Intercultural relationships are increasingly common, especially in “hyperdiverse” Western cultures, where mixed marriage has been steadily rising over the decades. According to the Pew Research Center1, marriage to someone of a different race or ethnicity went from 3 percent in the late 1960s to 7 percent in the 1980s and, as of 2015, was hitting 17 percent. In metropolitan areas, rates are even higher.

What used to be controversial, even anathema, is now commonplace, at least in progressive Western urban centers. Because the concept of race is misleading, contemporary scholars have moved away from describing mixed marriages as “interracial”, preferring the term “intercultural”.

Despite become more familiar, and providing rich opportunities for exchange and diversification in modern families, intercultural relationships present unique challenges. While some intercultural couples are more likely to stay together than their culturally matched peers, on average intercultural couples have a 10 percent higher divorce or separation rate (41 versus 31 percent). To an extent, survey research shows that durability of intercultural relationships varies depending on which cultures are involved2.

Given rising rates of intercultural marriage, and the needs of increasing numbers of mixed ethnicity people ("swirls") born to intercultural parents, understanding the challenges and opportunities encountered in such families is increasingly critical. Researchers Yurtaeva and Charura (2024) conducted a comprehensive review of relevant studies published between 1995 and 2022, analyzing and coding recurring themes to derive four overarching categories. Researchers highlighted that the majority of research was done in Western cultures, and findings should be interpreted and applied with that understanding.

Several elements emerged from the analysis. First, raising children is often complicated in intercultural families, and childbirth can precipitate conflict and questioning of the relationship as couples realize what they are facing. From discipline to sleep and feeding to how to show love and support, key aspects of parenting vary........

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