Meta-Analysis of Children in Stepfamilies

Each analysis investigated several mediating variables including family characteristics (SES level and age of the child" and methodological characteristics of the studies (e.g. sampling technique, type of assessment instrument used, and so forth). It was expected that, for all measures of adjustment, children of intact families would show significantly higher levels of adjustment than children of stepfamilies.

The findings of the study did not support this conclusion. At best, findings showed a weak, basically negligible effect for the family structure variable. Further, moderating variables did not appear to explain adjustment variance. Although Age of Child was found to significantly interact with family structure for psychosocial adjustment, alternative explanations for this finding were possible. It was concluded that the notion that stepfamilies debilitate children's adjustment was without strong empirical justification and could be

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in which the sample was living; publication form; type of dependent variable; source of the data; the type of instrument used by the investigator; type of sampling procedures used; and whether the sample was drawn from a general or clinical population. Coding was assisted by a Ph.D-level Experimental Psychologist. Intercoder agreement on moderator variables ranged from 82 -93 percent with an average of 86 percent across the three conducted meta-analyses. Intercoder agreement on additional variables subjected to a priori analyses ranged from 85-89 percent with an average of 87 percent across the conducted meta-analyses. Agreement of 100 percent on all variables was achieved following further discussion of the variables and the studies themselves. Data Analysis Procedures For each performed meta-analysis, the statistic regarding the influence of family structure on the adjustment measure was converted to the standardized effect size, g, defined as the difference in performance, expressed in standard deviation units, between children living in stepfamilies and children living in intact families. Following the conversion of each study statistic to the standardized effect size, g, effect sizes were weighted by the numbe
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Approximate Word count = 2815
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page)