Exploring issues and strengths of cross-cultural marriage among Korean immigrants

Life satisfaction of multicultural married couples: Actor-Partner Interdependence Model analysis

We aimed to identify the actor and partner effects of health status, relationship satisfaction, and depression on the life satisfaction of married immigrant women and their husbands in South Korea. We used a cross-sectional design that included 2865 multicultural married couples with data from the 2015 national survey of multicultural families in Korea. We analyzed the data using path analyses within the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) framework. Health status, depression, and relationship satisfaction had actor effects in both wives and husbands, while depression had no partner effects on either. Health status had partner effects only for wives, and relationship satisfaction had partner effects for both husbands and wives. Given that factors influencing life satisfaction differed in couples and since those with depression and poor health were more susceptible to lower life satisfaction, it is essential to introduce efforts to prevent depression and improve relationships considering differences of partner effects.

Effects of laughter therapy on the stress response of married immigrant women in South Korea: A randomized controlled trial

The authors aimed to investigate the effects of a laughter therapy (LT) program on the acculturative stress, anxiety, depression, salivary cortisol, and salivary IgA of married immigrant women in South Korea. A randomized waiting-list control design was utilized. The 19 experimental group participants were given LT twice a week for 2 weeks, whereas the 22 participants in the waiting-list control group received no treatment during the same period but received it afterward. Outcomes were measured right after the completion of the intervention and 2 weeks later. The experimental group showed significantly decreased levels of acculturative stress, anxiety, depression, and salivary cortisol compared to the control group. As for salivary IgA, however, the experimental group showed no statistically significant decrease compared to the control group. An LT program can be a good option for married immigrant women undergoing acculturation experiences in consideration of its effectiveness.

How Can Marriage Immigrants Contribute to the Sustainability of the Host Country? Implications from the Leisure and Travel Patterns of Vietnamese Women in South Korea

This qualitative exploratory study focuses on marriage immigrant women and explores the possibility they might contribute to the sustainability of the host country. A sustainable society, the contribution of visiting friends and relatives (VFR) tourism to destination sustainability, information behavior, and fringe stakeholder involvement for sustainable destination management are the focus of this study. Vietnamese marriage immigrant women in South Korea were investigated; the reasons for the investigation include: their increasing numbers, their significance caused by the roles both at the household and the societal levels, and the increased diplomatic ties between Vietnam and South Korea. The narratives of 16 informants about their leisure, hosting of friends and relatives, and information sharing patterns show that Vietnamese marriage immigrant women’s leisure and travel facilitate their subjective well-being and the enhancement of social capital, which potentially contribute to a sustainable society. Their hosting experience of the visits of friends and relatives, and its implications for sustainability, are further discussed. Furthermore, their roles as information mediators suggest their potential to contribute to the formation of the host country reputation. Self-appraisal of their unique travel patterns provides implications for involving this group for destination management. We consider both their importance and constraints as contributors to the host country attaining sustainability, and the implications are discussed.