Immigrant family members negotiating preferred cultural identities in family therapy conversations: a discursive analysis

In this article we present a discursive analysis of how immigrant family members relationally recognize and co‐articulate with each other's preferred cultural memberships during family therapy conversations. This article draws from a qualitative study of family therapy conversations with a sample of sixteen video‐recorded sessions with nine immigrant families and their therapists, and from separate interviews with each family member. Selected segments of therapy conversations and subsequent individual interviews were transcribed verbatim for the analysis. We show exemplars of how therapists help immigrant family members move beyond dis‐preferred cultural membership ascriptions (i.e. misrecognition) by foregrounding cultural identities family members deem more appropriate. We conclude by discussing how this preference‐animated research can be useful for practitioners to help immigrant family members co‐construct cultural identities that suit them better as individuals and members of a family. Practitioner points Misrecognition occurs when immigrant family members’ preferred cultural identities are disregarded or not acknowledged in family conversations and interactions By foregrounding cultural identities at play in family therapy, practitioners can facilitate dialogues helping family members recognize preferred cultural identities Discursive research methods may enhance therapists’ awareness of how discursive negotiations of cultural identities influence family members’ relationships