Introduction by Dr. Michael Tobin

In this drama, the difficulty of combining two families is put to the test. Kimberly (43) and Greg (50) have been married for 1 year. Kimberly has a teenage daughter, Dina, 15, from a previous relationship. (She never married and was a single mom.) Greg, whose first wife, Barbara, died of skin cancer, is the father of a grown daughter, Tanya, (21) from his first marriage.

Kimberly resents Greg because she wants him to act more like a father to Dina. She wants Greg to love Dina the way he loves Tanya. But demanding love is not an effective means of gaining Greg's love for Dina.

Kimberly and Greg are struggling with questions that face many stepfamilies: How active a parenting role does the stepparent take and how does the biological parent prepare the stepparent and child for that role? It is quite common for the children to resent the intrusion of the stepparent into their lives. They may react with anger at losing their favored position with their parent and having to adjust to a stranger in a parenting role. It takes great sensitivity and thought on the part of both the step and biological parent to make this transition into a new family structure.

The process of their communication is labeled, and shows Greg's and Kimberly's communication style.