Affects and Interactions in Newlyweds' Narratives: Black and White Couples Compared

Abstract

Abstract Two main questions guided this research: (a) How do newlyweds' affective statements and interactive styles found in narratives told about their relation-ship help us understand the meaning they make of their marriages? (b) How does analysis of the affective statements and interactive styles of Black couples (n = 136) in comparison to White couples (n = 135) help us understand the differential meaning in these groups? The representative sample was inter-viewed from 5 to 8 months after marriage. The narrative procedure asked the couples to tell the story of their relationship. By and large, Black couples and White couples showed similar patterns of affective reactions: They were gener-ally positive, emphasizing individual rather than communal affects, many of which dealt with the external world rather than their own interpersonal lives. In comparison to White husbands, Black husbands are more often perceived as the focus of affective life in the relationship. White couples refer to the external world in their affective statements more frequently than Black couples. With regard to interactive styles in the storytelling, there were more Black-White differences. Although most couples' interactions were mainly collaborative, Blacks showed less cooperative styles of interaction and greater conflict than did Whites. Using the developmental, cultural variant, and cultural equiva-lent perspectives, the article presents interpretations of the similimilarities and differences found for Black and White couples' narratives.(Psychology; an-thropology)