Thai-North American intercultural marriage in the United States: A qualitative study of conflict from Thai wives' perspectives

This exploratory, qualitative study addresses the nature of Thai-North American intercultural marriage from Thai wives' perspectives focusing on conflict issues, conflict management and relationship maintenance techniques. Six women of Thai origin married to North American men and living in the United States were recruited. Data obtained from in-depth interview, conflict diary, and participant observation were translated to English, and qualitatively analyzed by using domain, taxonomic, and componential analyses.; Five primary conclusions are drawn from the data. First, "need for a better life" appeared to be the most common reason for marriage. Second, four most common conflict issues emerged: communicative style differences, cultural differences, language barriers, and different opinions on household and family planning. Two out of six wives revealed male spouse's infidelity one of the most serious issues linked to conflict in their marriage. Third, it is clear that the techniques Thai wives utilized to manage their marital conflict had been influenced by Thai religious beliefs (e.g., placing importance on relationship harmony and law of "karma") and collectivists' points of view (e.g., mutual-oriented face maintenance). Results also indicated that obliging, avoiding, compromising, and integrating approaches were widely used by Thai wives. However, the combination of confrontational and nonconfrontational techniques was reported being employed when the basis of conflict was crucial and the situation was beyond reconciliation. The use of this mixed approach reflects the wives' preservation of Thai cultural beliefs and norms while simultaneously manifesting the change of Thai wives' gender roles in the United States.; Fourth, the five most common relationship maintenance techniques found in the study were assurance, self-improvement, openness, regular communication, and joint activities. Interestingly, the only wife who reported no serious conflict issue in her marriage revealed her frequent use of a sense of humor. Lastly, the results indicated that Thai-North-American marriage could prevail and remain healthy because of the couples' willingness to integrate and compromise.