Abstract

PEREZ EWERT, J. CAROLA  and  JARAMILLO TORRENS, ANADREA. My child and his siblings: Women's experience of first maternity in Chilean stepfamilies. Univ. Psychol. [online]. 2011, vol.10, n.2, pp.381-398. ISSN 1657-9267.

This qualitative study shows the perception of a group of Chilean women aged between 29 and 39 years regarding their experience of having their first child when they are members of a simple stepfamily. Sixteen women, whose partners maintain active contact with their child(ren) born in previous relationships were interviewed. Results confirm the existence of a process of "becoming a mother" and its course depends on stepchildren's presence. In addition our more relevant findings show that the specific topics of fears and motivations of having a child depend on the particular stepfamily context, and women's experiences is that this process vary according to the perceived quality of stepmother/stepchildren relationships.

Keywords : Stepfamilies; Fist Maternity; Stepmother/Stepchildren Relationships; Developmental Psychology; Emotions; Emotional Development; Interpersonal Relations; Group Behaviour.

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