Communication between couples of different ethnicitys - Term Paper Example

Since the communication is considered to be an important part of our everyday lives, therefore, interpersonal communication is equally important for the interpersonal relationships, for which communication is considered as lifeblood. Without considerable communication, relationships cannot flourish at any stage (Kalbfleisch, Interpersonal Communication: Evolving Interpersonal Relationship). However, the interpersonal communication becomes more complex between couples of different ethnicities.

In this paper, to discuss the interpersonal communication between couple from different ethnicities, two articles have been discussed. The first article is by Harris and Kalbfleisch (2001); which discusses the attraction of different ethnic groups towards each other. The article also explains that while dating, the individuals keep in view the ethnic background of the partner and select their communication strategies accordingly. The second article is by Claborne and Duan (2011) which discusses the mate selection in intercultural marriages.

The researcher claims that with positive link of communication between couples, a balanced relationship can be attained. On the basis of these discussed articles, the conclusion for this paper has been made accordingly. Articles ARTICLE 1: In the article, ‘Interracial Dating: the Implications of Race for Initiating a Romantic Relationship’ by Harris and Kalbfleisch (2001), the research shows that mostly the couples from different ethnicities are attracted towards each other because of similar values and interest.

Few of them are attracted due to the physical appearance of their counterpart, and the rest of them because of their physiological makeup. The paper predicts the future of interracial dating to be very bright, as the population of the U.S. will consist primarily of people of the colour. This will increase the interpersonal contact between different ethnicities, thus the ratio of their relationship will also rise. The paper discusses the role of communication in the interracial romantic relationship.

The paper presents six factors by Orbe that influence the co-cultural communication. The factors include: the preferred outcome for the relationship; the lived experience of co-cultural group members; abilities that refer to personal skills at using different communication practices; situational context involving the setting; perceived cost and reward involved in the co-cultural communication; and communication approaches to choose the appropriate communication strategy. Similarly Adler and Towne (2003) discuss the identity needs of the humans and explain that the sense of identity only comes from the interaction with others.

Under this situation, the results of the paper conclude that the race of a potential romantic relational partner directly affects the verbal strategies that a person uses to initiate the date. It was also stated that due to the attitude about the interracial relationships, the participants purposely choose verbal strategies. Showing that, to fulfil their identity needs, the partners adopt different strategies that help them continue the communication between them. ARTICLE 2: The other paper is ‘Interaction in Intercultural Marriage’ by Claborne and Duan (2010).

The paper discusses the expectancy in the communication and culture. The paper says that cultures are extremely complex and consist of a number of interrelated cultural orientations. Thus, the expectancy valences can