The effects of favoritism with stepchildren
When there is favoritism with the stepchildren, this can have a very negative effect on their emotional development.
Favoritism exists in almost every family and it is not something parents should be ashamed of, but it is something they should be careful about . Favoritism can cause a deep emotional wound in children who feel displaced by their favorite siblings.
Sometimes parents do not realize that they are paying too much extra attention to another child, because it may be a new baby or a sick child. Usually the complications of mixed families can also be harmed, such as when there are tensions between stepparents and stepchildren. When one child is favored over others, the well-being of the whole family can suffer.
It is crucial to realize this so that in this way, you do not fall into toxic favoritism and you can promote an equitable relationship with all children, whether they are biological or the children of the couple within the mixed family.
Index
FAVORITISM LIMITS RELATIONSHIPS
Favoritism is not limited to blended families . Parents can favor one child over another for many reasons, including gender, behavior, personality, and personal interests. Stepparents often favor their biological children over their stepchildren. This favoritism can lead to problems of depression , poor self-esteem, and a lack of self-confidence later in a child’s life.
Even if the children are not biological, if it has been decided to create a mixed family, it must be borne in mind that the couple’s children must be treated as biological children and therefore have an equitable relationship with everyone. Just as you want to be treated like a biological father or mother even if you are not, you must offer the same in terms of the relationship between all your children and stepchildren.
MIXED FAMILIES
In a close-knit family, it is unrealistic to expect stepparents and stepchildren to be close to each other right away. For example, a stepmother will not feel the same immediate and unconditional love for her stepchildren as she does for her own children.
Expecting the stepparent or stepchildren to automatically have deep feelings for each other would only put a lot of pressure on everyone involved. However, a constant attitude of favoritism is a different issue that must be addressed to avoid emotional problems both in the present and in the future.
CONSEQUENCES OF FAVORITISM
Some stepparents never connect emotionally with their stepchildren and may even view them with resentment, jealousy, or hostility. If the stepfather and the child’s biological father have a child together, both parents may favor the new child they have in common over the child from a previous relationship.
This can cause long-term problems for the underprivileged child, including higher levels of aggression and poor performance in school. Children are not to blame for the loving decisions of parents, they deserve to be treated with dignity and all the respect in the world. They are people in training and their parents should be their best role models.
SIBLING RELATIONSHIPS
The relationships between siblings and half siblings may also be affected by parental favoritism. Siblings may compete with each other for the affection of both parents, or they may maintain closer ties with their own half of the family without actually mixing. In this circumstance, stepbrothers may never develop a close relationship with each other and may have little connection as adults. The best way for families to overcome this type of problem is to communicate openly and honestly with each other about their feelings and difficulties.
Dr. Tabriella Perivolaris, Sara's mother and fan of fashion, beauty, motherhood, among others, about the female universe. Since 2018 she has been working as a copywriter, always bringing to her articles a little of her experience and experience as a mother and woman.