ABSTRACT
Intermarriage is regarded as a benchmark for assimilation, an indication of eroding social and economic barriers between the immigrant group and host society. Milton Gordon (1964) theorized, for example, that a high intermarriage rate is an indication that the racial and ethnic barriers between the minority group and host society are softening and that identification assimilation-wherein prejudice, discrimination, value, and power conflict are diminishing-is taking place. As the children of post1965 Asian immigrants reach marriageable age, an examination of their marriage preferences can provide a glimpse into their social and cultural assimilation processes. Marriage preferences can also provide insight into the collective and personal identities of Asian Americans, as well as the impact the identities have on the way they navigate their social worlds.
