Marital instability among British Pakistanis: transnationality, conjugalities and Islam

Abstract

General rightsThis document is made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the reference above. Full terms of use are available: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/pure/about/ebr-terms 1 Marital instability among British Pakistanis: transnationality, conjugalities and Islam AbstractThis article offers insights into the dynamics underlying an increase in marital instability in British Pakistani families, thus challenging stereotypes of British South Asian populations as representing 'old fashioned' families, with their lower rates of divorce in contrast with the wider British population. In addition to problems of compatibility, domestic violence and infidelity, we explore dynamics that may be more specific to the British Pakistani population, namely the transnational nature of many marriages, attitudes to parental involvement in arranging marriages, and the place of Islam. We suggest that, while arranged marriages were conventionally seen as safer than love marriages, both young people and their parents may now be viewing arranged marriages as riskier. In an arranged marriage that brings family approval but not personal fulfilment, young people are increasingly supported to divorce and remarry, with a greater degree of personal say in spouse selection.

Rituals of Infant Death: Defining Life and Islamic Personhood

“…This observation resonates with the observation that second and third generation British Pakistani women are challenging the ethic of patient, silent gendered suffering that prevails among first generation Pakistani women. 41 The findings in this article are based on a very small number of cases of women all of specific ancestral origins in Mirpur. My analysis of customary practices associated with miscarriage and stillbirth may thus be limited in scope to this community and locality.…”

Drivers of Cousin Marriage among British Pakistanis

“…There is the possibility that a spousal entry visa will be rejected and a married daughter may in effect become a single parent; another risk is that the incoming spouse (and their family in Pakistan) is using the British spouse as a ‘passport’ to the West without any commitment to the marriage [10, 47]. Transnational marriages of people raised continents apart, even when they are first cousins, can also fail for reasons that include spousal incompatibility and conflicting expectations of the marriage [10, 48]. Conflict over the use of an incoming husband's wage where husbands expect to remit money to Pakistan may also contribute to marital instability [43, 48].…”

“…Transnational marriages of people raised continents apart, even when they are first cousins, can also fail for reasons that include spousal incompatibility and conflicting expectations of the marriage [10, 48]. Conflict over the use of an incoming husband's wage where husbands expect to remit money to Pakistan may also contribute to marital instability [43, 48]. Changing expectations of marital intimacy, in its modern sense of personal fulfilment and companionate marriage, are also an increasingly important factor in destabilising marriage.…”

“…From this perspective, some young people and their parents are viewing arranged marriages as ‘riskier’ than love marriages. Islam is emerging as a significant resource for some young women in asserting their rights, including rights to divorce [48]. …”

Out of Touch: <i>Understanding Post-divorce Relationships between Children and Fathers in Ethnic Minority Families</i>

“…Hence, power structures in ethnic minority families may tilt towards mothers and children having more-and fathers less-say in families as compared to the pre-migration situation (Pels & De Haan 2007). Studies also show that levels of divorce in non-Western ethnic minority populations in Denmark and elsewhere tend to increase over time (Qureshi 2014;Liversage 2012).…”