Resilience in Remarried Families

Abstract

We aimed to identify, explore and describe the resiliency factors that enable remarried families to adjust and adapt. The Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation was used to conceptualize the factors that contribute to the families' adaptation process. Triangulation of method — with an exploratory, descriptive correlation design was used in this study. A biographical questionnaire with open-ended questions, in conjunction with a number of structured questionnaires, was used to gather the data. Non-probability purposive and snowball-sampling techniques were used to obtain the participants. Participants consisted of 19 parents and 16 adolescents, equalling a total of 35 participants. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the biographical information. Correlation analysis was used to analyse the quantitative data; and content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. Family hardiness, problem-solving communication, and family time and routines showed a positive correlation with the FACI8 for both adults and adolescents; while acquiring social support, a subscale of the F-COPES showed a positive correlation with the FACI8 for the adults, and social support as measured by the SSI showed a positive correlation for the adolescents. The results of the qualitative component of the study revealed that various common themes emerged between the adult and adolescent participants' responses. These themes included spirituality, boundaries, communication, flexibility, and tolerance.