The AFFIRM Model for Navigating Challenges in Continuously-Interfaith and Divergent-Interfaith Marriages

The primary purpose of this study was to identify the processes that helped happy and stable interfaith marriages navigate religious differences. To contextualize these adaptive processes, we secondarily explored the interfaith challenges these couples experienced. A final exploratory aim compared these challenges and processes in continuously-interfaith couples who started as and remained interfaith, and divergent-interfaith couples, an understudied subgroup who initially shared a religion but later became interfaith due to religious changes. In-depth interviews were conducted with 30 interfaith couples (N = 60) that had been recruited through purposive sampling who reported being happily married on average 18.7 years. Six core themes were identified through team-based systematic thematic analysis using NVivo. Many couples reported several significant challenges because of their religious differences, as discussed in our first theme. We organized the five themes regarding how couples navigated religious differences to create the AFFIRM model. That is, the adaptive processes we identified in these interfaith couples were that they (a) Assisted and supported each other's practices and beliefs, (b) Focused on similarities of belief, (c) Fostered religious Intimacy and understanding, (d) Respected each other's religious choices, and (e) made Marriage their first and highest priority. Themes are discussed in terms of continuously-interfaith couples (n = 25) and divergent-interfaith couples (n = 5). Interfaith couples may benefit from the progressive addition of the AFFIRM strategies in treatment. Replication of these qualitative findings with other interfaith couples are indicated to refine usefulness of the model.