| The impact of race, power, and marriage has been debated in American society for generations, yet there is little understanding around the interconnected aspects of these concepts. While interracial marriage has been on the rise due to increased racial tolerance and integration of cultures, the rate of dissolution of these marriages is staggering. Furthermore, little insight exists regarding the impact of power in the experiences of interracial couples. This study was aimed at addressing these gaps in the literature by better understanding the impact of power in the everyday experiences of interracial couples and how this relates to marital satisfaction. A qualitative methodological approach was employed and data were analyzed using the theoretical foundations of Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. Eight couples (16 individual participants) completed an eligibility screener, demographic questionnaire, the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale -- RDAS (Busby, Christensen, Crane, & Larson, 1995), and a semi-structured interview adapted from the Relationship Quality Interview -- RQI (Lawrence, Barry, Brock, Bunde, Langer, Ro...Dzankovich, 2011). The findings included four categories and 11 themes. The categories included how race impacts marriage and family life, conflicts and tactics used by interracial couples are common to all couples, emotional closeness and support protects against relational conflict and power is discussed in terms of gender rather than race. From these categories the literature on race and marriage was expanded, and the results were applied clinically for the purposes of therapeutic couples' treatment and psychoeducation. |
