Marital satisfaction and divorce in couples in stepfamilies

We review research and theory examining stress and coping in stepfamilies as predictors of marital quality and divorce. Although the divorce rate in first-marriages has stabilized after years of increase in North America, the divorce rate of remarriages continues to increase. We argue that depression and marital distress are both mechanisms through which stepfamily stress impacts marital stability, with parenting stressors particularly potent determinants of divorce. We draw upon our own research predicting divorce across 20 years in 112 married couples in stepfamilies, as well as from the larger literature on stepfamilies.