Asianness' under Construction

The Contours and Negotiation of Panethnic Identity/Culture among Interethnically Married Asian Americans

Bibliographic Data

ID2363379
AuthorsKelly H Chong (0000-0002-8795-3714, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA, corresponding author)
Year2017
Volume60
Issue1
Pages52-76
Publication date2017-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSociological Perspectives (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0731-1214 • E-ISSN: 1533-8673
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0731121415611682
OpenAlexW2263183924
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited52

Based on life-history interviews of interethnically married U.S.-raised Asians, this article examines the meaning and dynamics of Asian American interethnic marriages, and what they reveal about the complex incorporative process of this 'in-between' racial minority group into the U.S.. In particular, this article explores the connection between Asian American interethnic marriage and pan-Asian consciousness/identity, both in terms of how panethnicity shapes romantic/marital desires of individuals and how pan-Asian culture and identity is invented and negotiated in the process of family-making. My findings indicate that while strong pan-Asian consciousness/identity underlies the connection among intermarried couples, these unions are not simply a defensive effort to 'preserve' Asian-ethnic identity and cultur against a society that still racializes Asian Americans, but a tentative and often unpremeditated effort to navigate a path toward integration into the society through an ethnically based, albeit hybrid and reconstructed identity and culture, that helps the respondents retain the integrity of 'Asianness

Aesthetics · Asian americans · Consciousness · Ethnic group · Psychoanalysis · Romance · Sociology · Anthropology · Gender Studies · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy · Psychology · Racial and Ethnic Identity Research

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