Clinical Work with Intercultural Couples

Singh, Reenee; Killian, Kyle D.; Bhugun, Dharam; Tseng, Shu‐Tsen

doi:10.1002/9781119438519.ch66

Cited by 4 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Hsu (2001, p. 233) pointed out that cultural understanding of gender roles a is “a classic source of problems for intercultural couples”. Singh et al (2020) conclude that this can result in either the male or the female partner being perceived as domineering in the couple relationship. This might mean that partners might need to not only adjust their personal styles, but also establish mutually agreed rules concerning gender role divisions without having any common ground at all which can create considerable stress in the relationship (Cools, 2006; Hsu, 2001; Tien et al, 2017).…”

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Difference in cultural backgrounds often brings difference in native languages spoken by the members of an intercultural union. Along with enriching the relationship, this can pose substantial challenge for partners to navigate (Singh et al, 2020). Lacking proficiency in partner’s native language can complicate on the overall communicative process by limiting communication with extended family, compromising understanding of the customs and traditions of each other’s cultures placing one member of the relationship at a power disadvantage (Cools, 2006; Sala & Ersoy Çelik, 2021).…”

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Struggling to find the right words to express emotions can make communication slower and less efficient while words of love expressed in a foreign language are often perceived as superficial and lacking depth of meaning (Dewaele & Salomidou, 2017). However, despite an array of the negative consequences and limitations, using a foreign language in communicating with one’s partner can become a liberating experience due lacking emotional attunement and ease this brings to talking about the feelings and topics that might be more difficult to speak about in the native language (Dewaele & Salomidou, 2017; Singh et al, 2020).…”

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Emotional expression in a foreign language can be further complicated by the cultural differences in communication styles (Singh et al, 2020). For example, Remennick (2013) found that Russian-Hebrew partners experience difficulties in expressing and discussing emotions due to cultural differences in normative emotion talk and how much emotion to share in the relationship.…”

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ‘practical’ and ‘professional’ competencies would therefore enable the clinician to incorporate this understanding into their work with intercultural relationships. The stance of authentic understanding of partners’ cultural experiences cannot be separated from the ‘personal’ competencies that involve recognition of therapist’s own values and beliefs that have been shaped by their own cultural and ethnic heritage (Singh et al, 2020). This process of reflexive self-awareness should be coupled with continuous efforts to co-construct the knowledge about the client’s worldviews through intersubjective dialog and open conversation (Singh, 2009; Williams, 2008; Yan & Wong, 2005).…”

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Comprehensive scoping review of research on intercultural love and romantic relationships

Yurtaeva,

Charura

2024

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships

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Despite the growing evidence that the modern world is more diverse and so is the nature of relationships that present in therapy, there remains paucity of empirical evidence on how cultural differences impact those in intercultural romantic ties. We conducted this comprehensive scoping review with the aim to outline the size and scope of existing research in the field of intercultural love and romantic relationships. We utilised a five-stage scoping review protocol provided by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) manual for synthesis of evidence for a scoping review to ensure the rigour, transparency, and replicability of our findings. We reviewed peer-reviewed articles across nine electronic databases as well as “snowballing” the literature from the reference lists. A total of 46 studies were included in this review. We found that the majority of studies approached intercultural relationships from the deficit perspective, focusing on the domains of cultural difference that bring challenges to the relationship. These included culture-rooted differences in parenting standards and gender role expectations, among others. Often, cultural differences were found to bring power impedance into the relationship. Open communication and flexibility were found as important coping strategies. Differences in native language posed challenges to emotional communication between partners. These findings demonstrate that intercultural relationships face an additional layer of challenges and complexities that have to be recognised in therapy. We propose four domains of transmodality relational competencies on the basis of our findings to inform culturally sensitive therapeutic practice.

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Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Key Themes In Intercultural Relationship Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Comprehensive scoping review of research on intercultural love and romantic relationships

Yurtaeva,

Charura

2024

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships

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The ‘Arab spring’ within an intercultural couple. Does the unmentioned ‘racial difference’ matter?

Ugazio

Singh²

2021

Journal of Family Therapy

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Can the meaning‐making within an intercultural couple, and between this couple and their therapist, help us to understand the couple's bitter conflict and the difficulties of dealing with it in therapy? This single case study answers this question, presenting a semantic analysis inspired by Ugazio's model of family semantic polarities. The analysis was carried out by applying the family semantic grid II to 140 min from three video‐recorded and transcribed sessions with the couple. The result suggests that the misunderstandings and disappointments that fed the couple's conflict were connected with the lack of semantic cohesion within the couple. They constructed meanings during the therapeutic conversation using two different semantic worlds: the semantics of power and of freedom. The analysis also suggests some possible strategies to overcome the couple's conflict, and raises some questions about how to address racial differences during therapy. An intercultural couple's bitter conflict is clarified by a semantic analysis (SA) which highlights the couple's low semantic cohesion. The SA suggests focusing on the emotions – shame and courage – underlying the partners' dominant semantics – power and freedom – and anchoring the meanings to all the family members. Therapists should address ‘race’ and racism with intercultural couples, even if such conversations do not emerge spontaneously in their narrated stories.

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Cultural reflexivity and the referral problem: A discourse analysis of three initial sessions of intercultural couple therapy

Cadenhead¹,

Fellin

2023

Journal of Family Therapy

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Using a combination of macro-and micro-analytic approaches in discourse analysis, this article examines transcripts from three initial sessions of DVD-recorded conjoint couple therapy with an intercultural couple.We analyse the strategies of power employed by therapy participants to promote their preferred construction of the referral problem. Focusing on the intersections of gender, psychopathology and culture, we explore how wider sociocultural discourses play out in the microcontext of participants' discursive exchanges. We also consider how the therapist's interventions privilege and marginalise client discourses in both strategic and unintended ways. This article offers some clinical techniques to address the dilemmas and difficulties identified in our analysis. We conclude by underscoring the value of reviewing recordings and transcripts of therapy dialogues to enhance cultural reflexivity.

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Clinical Work with Intercultural Couples

Cited by 4 publications

References 42 publications

Comprehensive scoping review of research on intercultural love and romantic relationships

Comprehensive scoping review of research on intercultural love and romantic relationships

The ‘Arab spring’ within an intercultural couple. Does the unmentioned ‘racial difference’ matter?

Cultural reflexivity and the referral problem: A discourse analysis of three initial sessions of intercultural couple therapy

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