Intersectionality within family sciences and family therapy journals from 2010 to 2020

Abstract

Contemporary scholars have applied intersectionality as a means of capturing the complex ways in which identity, inequality, and social justice converge to manifest unique sources of strength and vulnerability. Given the increase in the use of this term, the aim of this study was to systematically and comprehensively examine the application of intersectionality in the fields of family science and family therapy from 2010 to 2020. Through the use of content and thematic analysis, we examined trends and variations in how scholars operationalized and applied the principles of intersectionality. Findings suggest that intersectionality remains underutilized and underdefined. Moreover, intersectionality was primarily concentrated in theoretically driven articles and was least prevalent in articles focused on addressing a specific clinical topic or need or research methods. These findings suggest that, although the use of intersectionality is expanding, its applicability in empirical, and especially clinically focused, scholarship remains an area of growth and opportunity.

Relationship maintenance among military couples

“…The lack of attention to diversity in most samples, coupled with the relative absence of research on relationship maintenance that considers questions about power structures and multiple marginalized identities, underscore how much work remains to promote inclusivity in the literature. Such findings also suggest that the rising prominence of intersectionality within the social sciences (Curtis et al, 2020; Grzanka et al, 2020) has not yet taken root in the study of relationship maintenance among military couples.…”

“…Relationship maintenance is widely considered a universal aspect of interpersonal relating (Ogolsky & Monk, 2020), but it can vary across social identities such as race, class, gender, age, and culture (Fiori & Rauer, 2020;Gaines & Ferenczi, 2020;Rauer & Proulx, 2020), which suggests the value of an intersectionality approach. Intersectionality is the study and critique of how a person's lived experiences are shaped by the interplay between multiple social identities and systems of marginalization (Buchanan & Wiklund, 2021;Crenshaw, 1991;Curtis et al, 2020). Intersectionality, originating from Black feminist thought, evaluates the dynamics of privilege and oppression with a commitment to social justice (Collins & Bilge, 2020;Cooke & Few-Demo, 2022;Few-Demo & Allen, 2020).…”

Not So Micro: An Investigation of the Impact of Microaggressions on Sexual Risk Taking and Mental Health in South Asian and Other Racialized Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men

“…Inherent in this process is understanding the repeated, chronic interactions participants experienced throughout their lives from micro (e.g., individual interactions with family), mezzo (e.g., interactions with group systems such as GBM community organizations) and macro (e.g., interactions with larger systems such as healthcare and education policy) perspectives. These interactions were distilled throughout the current analysis, consistent with other research incorporating intersectionality and the minority stress model within thematic analysis (Christensen & Jensen, 2012;Curtis et al, 2020;Noyola et al, 2020;Shen et al, 2019). Lastly, within thematic analysis, themes are extrapolated along two approaches, inductive or deductive (Braun & Clarke, 2006).…”

Racial discrimination and romantic relationship dynamics among Black Americans: A systematic review

“…Similarly, although we elect to focus on romantic relationships and US samples, we acknowledge that racial discrimination can affect multiple family systems and non-familial interpersonal relationships across geographic contexts. Finally, we note that family scientists have conceptualized intersectionality as identity, power, or both (Curtis et al, 2020). We view intersectionality as an assessment of intersecting systems of oppression and apply this perspective in our review and discussion of findings.…”