Marital conflict and acculturation among Mexican American husbands and wives. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology

This study examined the relationship between acculturation and multiple dimensions of marital conflict among Mexican American husbands and wives. Participants were 151 husbands and wives who were recruited from a health maintenance organization in northern California and individually interviewed. More acculturated husbands and wives engaged in less avoidance of conflict and were more expressive of their feelings in an argument. Husbands who were more acculturated reported more conflict concerning sex and consideration for the other. Bicultural and more acculturated husbands re-ported that their wives were more verbally and physically aggressive, compared with mono-Mexican husbands. The findings provide evidence that more acculturated hus-bands and wives are involved in more direct expressions of conflict in their marriages, compared with less acculturated husbands and wives. • Mexican American • marital conflict • acculturation • bicultural Despite the growing literature on Mexican American families and an increase in re-search on family relationships, relatively fe