Transnational Couples Parenting in the United States: A story of Integration, Navigation, and Resilience

Over a million people migrate and resettle in the United States every year. Subsequent to the diversification of the U.S. population is a rising rate in transnational marriage. Juxtaposed with the increasing prevalence of intermarriage are historical restrictions and continued antipathy of such marriages and the families that they build. Using a phenomenological design, this study explored how transnational couples experience their parent and partner roles. Six couples were interviewed, each partner separately and then together with in-depth questions about how their family and social and familial context informed their roles and how they navigated their relationship as parents and partners. Three themes emerged from the couples’ experience: integration of past and present selves, intersections between partners, and navigation as parents.