Stress Inoculation Training for Stepcouples

Stepfamilies do not have the corner on the market of having to cope with stress. However, there is ample evidence that the complexities of living in a stepfamily produce its own set of stressors that first families are not exposed to. Recent research identifies inter- personal stress as the major problem in all steprelationships (Martin & Martin, 1992; Stanton, 1986; Visher & Visher, 1982). This paper examines the nature of stress in stepfamilies, describes a program for stepcouples designed to assist couples to deal with stress, Stress Inoculation Training (SIT) and evaluates the utility of SIT as experienced by fifty-one stepcouples. SIT was developed by Donald Meichenbaum and has been applied effectively to a number of diverse populations (Meichenbaum, 1985, pp. 24-25). The pro- gram reported in this paper was a collaborative effort between the School of Social Work at Arizona State University and East Valley Jewish Family and Childrens service in Mesa, Arizona.