Is intermarriage a good indicator of integration?

Song, Miri (2009) Is intermarriage a good indicator of integration? Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 35 (2). pp. 331-348. ISSN 1369-183X. (doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/13691830802586476) (Full text available)

Abstract

In this paper I review and examine the assumed link between intermarriage and integration. I focus primarily on literature from the US and Britain. Intermarriage is said to signal a significant lessening of ‘social distance’ between a minority group and the White majority, enabling unions between groups which would previously have been taboo. It is often assumed that intermarriage for ethnic minorities is the ultimate litmus test of integration, but is it? And if there is a link between intermarriage and integration, what is the nature and extent of ‘integration’ achieved by minority groups and by the minority partner? I argue that the link between intermarriage and integration is both more tenuous and more complex than many social scientists have argued, and needs a critical reappraisal, especially in multiethnic societies which are witnessing unprecedented levels of diversity, both across and within their ethnic minority groups.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled keywords:	Intermarriage, integration, Milton Gordon, minority, structural assimilation, social distance
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
Divisions:	Faculties > Social Sciences > School of Social Policy Sociology and Social Research
Depositing User:	Mita Mondal
Date Deposited:	03 Jul 2013 09:53 UTC
Last Modified:	11 Feb 2016 09:56 UTC
Resource URI:	https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/34514 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)