Why do They 'Commuter Marriage'? Interpersonal Communication: the Commuter Marriage Couple Cases

摘要

Living apart for spouses can be one of the causes of conflict. For the commuter marriage couples, trust, respect, and openness are the key to success in maintaining the marriage. This research analyzed eight commuter marriage couples, the established type, who have been married for more than 13 years with children. The couples are forced to stay far apart for work reasons, so the frequency of meeting can be done at least once a week. This research used effective interpersonal communication theory and conflict management to analyze commuter marriage couple in maintaining their marriages. The results showed that maintaining communication and interpersonal relationships can maintain marriage for commuter marriage couples, the established type, as a commitment to their marital goals. The majority of commuter marriage couples always maintain openness, supportive attitudes, empathy, positive attitudes and sincerity in the pursuit of marriage, although limited by time and space. Mutual trust, supportive, and openness encourages mutual understanding, mutual respect, and mutual development of interpersonal relationships. In addition, the handling of conflicts by informants is positive and constructive without breaking interpersonal relationships. The results also proved that each pair manages the conflict differently. Some of them use compromising, accommodating, collaborating, avoiding, and competing. In addition, the development of information technology also facilitates communication access to each other. Hence, time and distance differences are not an obstacle.