This study focused on how couples managed their interracial and intercultural differences. To understand their experiences, a qualitative grounded theory analysis was used (n=17). Analysis revealed that couples experienced most issues as cultural issues; race only occurred during their interactions with "others." They appeared to organize their responses according to four relationship structures: Integrated, Singularly Assimilated, Coexisting, and Unresolved. Couples in each of these structures managed daily process through four sets of relationship strategies: (a) creating a "we," (b) framing differences, (c) emotional maintenance, and (d) positioning in relationship to familial and societal context. These findings are a step toward a strength-based and research-informed education and clinical interventions for this population. Video Abstract.
© 2012 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.