Thesis (M.A.)--University of Florida, 2005. / Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 235 pages. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2006. / Title from title screen (site viewed May 23, 2007). PDF text: ix, 198 p. ; 1.88Mb UMI publication number: AAT 3236912. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Doctor of Philosophy / School of Family Studies and Human Services / Joyce Baptist / Sandra M. Stith / Black-White couples have the highest rate of divorce compared to other interracial pairings in the U.S. (Zhang & Hook, 2009). Given the racial climate in the United States that privileges White people (Burton et al., 2010; Hardy & Laszloffy, 2008; Killian, 2012), and the on-going opposition to Black-White unions (Pew Research Center, 2017), it is reasonable to expect that Black-White couples experience elevated stress from direct and indirect forms of racial discrimination. In order to identify factors that may help boost the resilience of non- divorced Black-White couples, this study used the Vulnerability Stress Adaptation (VSA) model of marriage (Karney & Bradbury, 1995) to better understand how problem-solving skills may buffer the impact of racial discrimination experienced by Black-White couples on marital satisfaction. The study included 178 Black-White heterosexual couples between the ages of 18 and 40. A common fate moderation analysis investigated whether problem-solving served as a mechanism through which Black-White couples were able to cultivate marital satisfaction despite the detrimental outcomes of discrimination experienced as an interracial couple. Results indicated that experiences of couple discrimination were negatively related to marital satisfaction and that couples’ problem-solving skills buffered the extent discrimination impacted couples’ marital satisfaction. The results have implications for therapists working with Black-White couples whether married or intending to marry. Research should further explore the impact discrimination experienced by interracial couples has on other aspects of relationships as well as on mental and physical health.

This thesis attempts to focus on families and their children (if any) in cross-cultural marriages. These families potentially face extra stress and strains in addition to those which all families face. As a result of recent social and economic changes, certain roles such as those of the breadwinner and caregiver, traditionally male-female roles, may be becoming more interchangeable. Cross-cultural families’ may have differences in cultural backgrounds, attitudes and expectations, as well as potential support networks, so the research will investigate whether these sorts of changes place even greater than usual demands on families. Therefore, it may be important for couples to be able to negotiate in respect to roles and activities as it is a form of interaction and communication. Negotiation usually takes place between couples because both have something to offer and gain from the process in order to achieve a win-win situation between them. Whilst the literature addressing the division of labour among cross-cultural couples in Western societies has grown considerably, there is relatively little research which examines the situation between cross-cultural couples in Hong Kong, where such unions are quite common. Hence, this research aims to investigate the process of negotiation (if any) between husbands and wives in cross-cultural marriages with relation to their roles within the family. It also attempts to elaborate the roles of domestic helpers and ageing parents, which may mediate or complement the duties of couples and, perhaps, enhance family harmony and family care to family members. The present study adopts a qualitative approach and grounded theory for data collection in examining a negotiation process between husbands and wives. A total of 14 middle class cross-cultural married couples (aged 30 to 58) were interviewed. Different sources of information such as literature, in-depth interviews with couples and opinions from key informants were also adopted to enrich the findings and to enable triangulation to enhance the reliability of the data. The findings show that all of the cross-cultural couples shared the household division of work due to the egalitarian attitudes they held towards each other. They tended to be more tolerant to each other. It is noted that domestic helpers can complement the duties of couples. The roles of full-time domestic helpers are essential because they take the pressure off couples, whereas part-time domestic helpers are very helpful in doing jobs that couples do not want to. It is also suggested that ageing parents in Hong Kong only complement the duties of couples after the women has given birth. With respect to negotiation strategies, the more popular ones used were: compromising, accommodating and collaborative (problem-solving). It is also hoped that such strategies may be developed for social help, with direct relevance to the social stability of cross-cultural families in Hong Kong.

Although accumulating research indicates that negative expectations about interracial interactions undermine the quality of such interactions, little research has examined the factors that moderate the influence of negative expectations on responses to interracial interactions. We propose that individuals who endorse work-related ideologies such as the Protestant work ethic (PWE) expect that outcomes in interracial interactions should be contingent upon individual effort. As a result, such individuals are hypothesized to respond in a negative manner when they believe that regardless of their effort in an interracial interaction, interaction partners will respond negatively to them (termed negative response expectancies). Consistent with this hypothesis, negative response expectancies led to an increased desire to avoid interracial interactions (Studies 1a and 1b) and more antisocial behavior directed at an interracial interaction partner among individuals who strongly endorsed the PWE (Study 2). Across the studies, effects of negative response expectancies were relatively weaker or non-significant among individuals lower in the PWE. The implications of these findings for understanding the interplay between the PWE and expectancies in interracial interactions are discussed.

This study intended to examine the demographic variables of gender, ethnicity, income, and the perception of success in interethnic/interracial couples. The Interethnic Couples Resource Questionnaire (ICREQ) was created and administered to 153 college students in a predominantly White campus. Other measures administered were the Modern Racism Scale and the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure. A pilot with Latino/a- White couples on the ICREQ revealed ethnicity not as a variable of interest among 32 college students surveyed. Additional ethnicities were added in the main study. Findings revealed, as in the pilot study, that income was the only significant variable in perception of success. A partial correlation analysis controlling for age revealed no changes in the relationship between income combinations and the Modern Racism Scale. Previous dating history did not moderate the relationship between perceived success across income pairings. The relationship between modern racism and perceived success also remained significant across three of the four income groups. Partial correlations by gender, residential region, and parents' education did not reveal any relationship between modern racism and ratings based on income combinations. Limitations, recommendations, and implications are discussed.

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In this qualitative study, the interactive process of exploring and developing shared, familial meanings about biracial identity development was investigated from the perspectives of both parents and children in Black-White multiracial families. Specifically, this study examined how monoracial parents and their biracial children describe the influence parents have on the biracial children's identity development process from the biracial individuals' youth into adulthood. Monoracial parents and their children were also invited to share how they negotiated the uniqueness of a biracial identity in both the parents' and the children's social arenas. Data were obtained through in-person, semi-structured interviews with 10 monoracial mothers and 11 of their adult (ages 18 to 40) biracial children. The data were analyzed using phenomenological methodology. The analysis of participants' experiences of biracial identity development revealed four major themes: that family interactions and relationships contribute to the creation of identity for biracial individuals, that mothers intentionally worked to create an open family environment for their biracial children to grow up in, that parents and children affect and are affected by interactions with American culture and society throughout their development, and finally that growing up biracial is a unique experience within each of aforementioned contexts. While there were many shared experiences among the families, each family had its own exceptional story of strength and adjustment to the biracial identity development process. Across cases, the overarching theme was one of togetherness and resiliency for the mothers and their adult children. Data from this study has important implications for research and practice among a number of human service professionals. / Ph. D.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Candyce S. Russell / There has been a rapid growth of heterosexual Black and White interracial couples in the United States in recent decades and numbers continue to increase. In addition, the concept of racial identity within Southern heterosexual Black and White interracial couples has not been explored. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how racial identity affects the dynamics of Black and White interracial relationships within the context of their extended family and community and the effect of interracial relationships on racial identity development. The focus of the study was to explore how partners in heterosexual Black and White interracial couples living in the South constructed and/or defined their individual racial identity, how the couple addressed cultural difference within the relationship, and how the couple handled opposition toward their relationship. Three theoretical/philosophical frameworks were used in this study. Phenomenology and social constructionism were utilized to provide a framework for the methodology of the study; Black racial identity theory (Cross, 1971, 1991) and White racial identity theory (Helms, 1990) were utilized to provide a framework for thinking about racial identity development. The sample consisted of four couples, each with children. Each couple was interviewed conjointly in a neutral setting and then allowed the researcher to accompany them on an outing in a public setting. This experience allowed the researcher to observe how the couple was received in public and how the couple managed public response. Interviews provided rich descriptions of how the research participants experienced themselves as individuals and as a couple in their marriage with respect to racial identity. Through case study analysis, six main themes and 22 sub-themes were identified. The main themes included: marital dynamics, racial identity, influences, reactions, advice, and counseling. Cross-case analysis revealed a small number of subthemes shared across cases. Differences between cases were considerable and were presented via the identification of new subthemes and unique cases. Three new subthemes were identified: normal couple, gaining acceptance, and religious affiliation. Recommendations are offered for future research and, tentatively, for marriage and family therapists who may work with couples similar to those in this study. Most notably, couples in this study saw themselves as “normal couples” brought together by love, and did not necessarily think of themselves as “interracial.” They did, however, talk as a couple about how to racially identify their children and how to help them respond to questions about their racial heritage.