Marrying “In” or “Out”? Scrutinizing the Link Between Integration and the Partner Choice of Young People of Turkish and Moroccan Origin in the Netherlands

For the past 10 to 15 years, Dutch policy makers and researchers, the general public, and minority organizations have been preoccupied with the marital choices of the children of Turkish and Moroccan immigrants. This concern was prompted by both the continuously high incidence of transnational marriages (to a spouse who has grown up in and usually migrates from the country of origin, i.e., Turkey or Morocco) leading to marriage migration, and the low incidence of ethnic intermarriage with Dutch natives. This is because their partner choice is—rather unquestioningly—considered as an indication of their level of integration in and orientation toward Dutch society. My qualitative research into the mechanisms of partner choice, courtship, and family formation by young people of Turkish and Moroccan origin calls into question the ease with which policy makers and researchers assume partner choice and cultural integration to be linked.