Of course, this twenty-first-century revision of The Brady Bunchis a highly ide-
alized view of blended families. When a divorced person remarries, the other parents
are usually in the picture, and their partner’s teenage children do not easily refer to
them as “Mom” or “Dad.” There are often considerable tensions about the blended
partner’s parenting rights and obligations. Sooner or later, a child is bound to yell, “I
don’t have to listen to you! You’re not my real father (or mother)!”
At least half of all children will have a divorced and remarried parent before they
turn 18 (Ahrons, 2004). They face different issues, depending on how old they are, the
role that their biological parents have, whether it’s Mom or Dad who remarries, and
whether it’s the custodial parent. Usually they must adjust to a new residence and a new
school and share space with new siblings. In many families, finances become a divisive
issue, placing significant strains on the closeness and stability of blended families (Korn,
2001; Martinez, 2005). Several studies have found that children in blended families—
both stepchildren and their half-siblings who are the joint product of both parents—do
worse in school than children raised in traditional two-parent families (see Ginther, 2004).
While the dynamics of blended families tend to be similar across class and race,
the likelihood of blending families tends to be far more common among the middle
classes, where parents have sufficient resources to support these suddenly larger
families. Lower-class families may be “blended” in all but name: They may cohabit
with other people’s children but not formalize it by marrying.
Violence in Families
The famous French sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville spoke of
the family as a “haven in a heartless world,” but for some the
family is a violent nightmare. In many families, the person who
promised to love and honor you is the most likely to physically
assault you; the one who promised to “forsake all others” is also
the most likely to rape you; and the one who is supposed to pro-
tect you from harm is the one most likely to cause that harm.
Intimate Partner Violence
Intimate partner violence (IPV)represents violence, lethal or non-
lethal, experienced by a spouse, ex-spouse, or cohabiting partner;
boyfriend or girlfriend; or ex-boyfriend or -girlfriend. It is com-
monly called “domestic violence,” but because some does not
occur in the home, IPV is the preferred term. IPV is the single
major cause of injury to women in the United States. More than
2 million women are beaten by their partners every year. Nearly
one in five victims of violence treated in hospital emergency rooms
was injured by a spouse, a former spouse, or a current or former
boyfriend or girlfriend (Bachman and Salzman, 1994; Kellerman
and Marcy 1992; Rhode, 1997; Straus and Gelles, 1990).
Globally, the problem of family violence is widespread. A
study released in 2006 by the World Health Organization found
that rates of IPV ranged from a low of 15 percent of women in
Japan to a high of 71 percent of women in rural Ethiopia. (Rates
in the European Union and United States were between 20 and
25 percent.) In 6 of the 15 sites of study, at least 50 percent of
VIOLENCE IN FAMILIES 409Intimate partner violence
(IPV) is the single major
cause of injury to women in
the United States. More than
2 million women—of all races
and classes—are beaten by
their partners every year.
Some scars may never
completely heal. n