Recruitment and Retention for Stepfamily Education

Abstract

To assist scholars and practitioners involved with marriage and relationship education for diverse audiences, this article establishes new and verifies already existing strategies to recruit and retain couples in stepfamilies. We examine recruitment and retention strategies used by 10 different agencies who offer the Smart Steps program to low-income stepfamilies. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 facilitators and 40 participants. Many of the identified strategies were consistent with related research regarding the use of incentives, minimizing costs, and removing logistical barriers. Additional strategies and implications were identified including the cultivation of trust, using personal contacts, involving children and incentivizing youth attendance, tapping into the interests and motivations of potential participants, and advertising common stepfamily problems conjointly with the promise of helpful solutions.