Generative Relationships in Stepfamilies: Resources, Innovations, and Family Learnings

Abstract

This article examines the generative relationships developed within stepfamilies in Colombia’s Coffee-Growing Region, contributing to a broader understanding of these family configurations beyond deficit-oriented perspectives. The study aimed to explore the family discourses and generative relationships that family members construct around their family organization; this article specifically focuses on findings related to generativity. A qualitative study was conducted with 25 stepfamilies (50 participants, including biological and stepparents, as well as biological and stepchildren). Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed using a thematic-interpretive approach. The findings reveal that these families build generative relationships through family resources, relational innovations, and collective learning processes that strengthen their patterns of coexistence and interpersonal relationships. The study concludes that, even in contexts marked by tension and complexity, stepfamilies develop creative forms of organization and care that expand traditional understandings of parenthood, kinship, and contemporary family life.