Associations between individual and couple-level minority stressors and relationship stress in queer women’s interracial/interethnic couple relationships

Abstract

Intimate relationships provide protections against excess stress. Little research has investigated this in same-sex/gender couples, and particularly interracial/interethnic same-sex/gender couples. In a sample of N = 215 women in same-sex/gender couple relationships, 43% if whom were in interracial/interethnic relationships, we examined differences in general stressors and both individual- and couple-level minority stressors. Women in interracial/interethnic couple relationships reported higher levels of individual-level childhood stress, microaggressions, stress related to race/ethnicity, and couple-level expectations and stereotypes. We also examined the associations between stressors and relationship outcomes and whether these associations differed comparing women in monoracial and interracial/interethnic couple relationships. We found multiple sources of general stressors and individual- and couple-level stressors that were associated with poorer relationship outcomes but found few differences by whether couples were monoracial or interracial/interethnic. Our findings have implications for couple-level interventions and highlight the importance of taking intersectional approaches to research on same-sex couples, as well as the importance of examining multiple sources and levels of stress.