Effects on the Only Child in a Blended Family and How to Build a Healthy Bond - Term Paper Example

The personality characteristics of an only child are not perceived too positively by people generally. It is pre-supposed that they are children who are mostly spoiled brats. In China, one child is encouraged to bring down population growth. These little ones are called little emperors and are considered to be spoilt brats world over. According to Falbo, research on work in this area indicates otherwise. According to research conducted by him an only child tends to be more achieving, motivated and successful.

However in a blended family and in social circuits the problems that crop up are significantly different. (Meyer) First of all, lets throw some insight into the concept of a blended family. A blended family is one in which there is a child included from the previous relationship in the family that was created by a new marriage. In other words only one child from the previous relationship can construe a blended family. If one is to put forth an honest account then humans have a natural inclination that indices them to favor their own children.

These children enjoy the bonus by virtue of conception. The blended family presents one with a very complex and difficult challenge to deal with. It is the challenge to honor, take care of and protect the only child in the blended family. It is to treat them as equals without letting the children of the spouse gets effected. There are a lot of ways in which a healthy bond can be developed in a blended family. A major disadvantage of favoring one’s own child while against a step child is the kind of adverse impacts such favoritism has on the psychology of the step child.

It ends up bringing down the self esteem of the step child. Children are too naive to be able to understand the natural and dynamic bonding of the child with his biological parent. They will not be able to rationalize any differential treatment in this regard. They would want to be treated with just as much love, affection and care. They would want to be respected henceforth as well. Anything less would not go down well with them and they will feel less important and less loved. So in a blended family, parents have to be cautious in nurturing a healthy bond with both the step child as well as the only child.

While it’s only fair, to have that special bond with one’s own child, the parent must figure out ways to develop his/her bond with the step child. This can be easy because no two people are the same. Similarly no two children are alike too. If one wants to, they can find ways to make both children special in their own rights. Once when enters into a marriage with someone who already has a child, there is given understanding that one will the child as if it was his/her own. If the child is not given equal treatment as the stepparent’s child, it will end up having a lasting impact on the child’s ability to gel well with other people.

He is expected to suffer from an identity crisis, will struggle developing a healthy self identity and would not be able to lead a life which is free of all kinds of emotional clutter. (Blended famiy focus) If one’s bias towards their only child, then this can jeopardize the marriage to and can have a severe impact on one’s relationship with the spouse and ultimately put the marriage on the rocks. No spouse would want to live under the belief that the care of their child has been