Communication Structures of Supplemental Voluntary Kin Relationships

Authors

Dawn O. Braithwaite, University of Nebraska–LincolnFollow
Jenna Stephenson, Abetz College of CharlestonFollow
Julia Moore, University of UtahFollow
Katie Brockhage, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

10-2016

Citation

Published in Family Relations 65 (October 2016), pp 616–630. doi: 10.1111/fare.12215

Comments

Copyright © 2016 National Council on Family Relations; published by John Wiley & Sons. Used by permission.

Abstract

Although scholars have constructed typologies of voluntary (fictive) kin, few have considered challenges and opportunities of interaction and relationships between biolegal and voluntary kin. This study focused on one type of voluntary kin, supplemental voluntary kin, relationships that often arise because of differing values, underperformed roles, or physical distance from the biolegal family, and wherein relationships are maintained with biolegal and voluntary kin. We examined how these family systems are constructed via interactions in relational triads of “linchpin” persons between biolegal family and voluntary kin. From in-depth interviews with 36 supplemental voluntary kin, we examined themes in the linchpins’ discourse surrounding the interaction, rituals, and ideal relationship between biolegal family and voluntary kin. We constructed a typology of four relational triads representing these relationships: intertwined, limited, separate, and hostile. We describe the structure and communication within each type, and implications for helping families with these triangulated voluntary kin relationships.