Journal of Counseling Research

Aim: Families are configured in many forms. The blended family is one of the types of family structures that affects the psychological well-being of adolescents. The present study was conducted to present a conceptual pattern of the factors of maladjustment of boy adolescents in blended families based on the conditions and consequences of the grounded theory. Method: This research was conducted using a qualitative method based on grounded theory in 2023. The target population in this study was adolescent boys aged 13 to 18 in blended families and studying in three educational regions of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari provinces. 12 boy students were selected purposefully. The research tool was a semi-structured interview. The data were analyzed using the Strauss and Corbin coding method. Findings: The coding of interview data led to identifying 81 open codes, 24 central codes, and 6 main classes about the factors of maladjustment of boy adolescents in blended families. The results showed that "lack of secure attachment", as a central category, plays a role in the maladjustment of adolescent boys in blended families. This category is affected by causal factors (The ups and downs of life), contextual factors (cultural conditions and background ), and intervening factors (characteristics of the stepfamily and the quality of interpersonal relationships). Also, the strategies used in the face of the lack of secure attachment include some defense mechanisms (idealization, daydreaming, taking refuge in the smartphone/virtual space, emotional cut-off), which ultimately lead to consequences such as academic and psychological problems in adolescent boys in blended families. Conclusion: What makes adolescents in blended families prone to maladaptive behaviors is not only the conditions of the blended families, but also stressful events caused by previous family conditions and the characteristics of the adolescent period, in combination with the conditions of the blended family.