Pastoral counselors who provide premarital counseling must address the topics that are most relevant to couples as they prepare for marriage. This article presents the results of a survey of clergy who provide premarital counseling, demonstrating the relative importance that clergy ascribe to premarital counseling topics, as well as the relationship between religious affiliation and ratings of ...

Descriptive statistics indicate that civil marriages and marriages preceded by premarital cohabitation are more unstable, i.e., more frequently followed by divorce. However, the literature has shown that selectivity plays an important role in the relationship between premarital cohabitation and union dissolution. We do not have evidence to date regarding the selectivity in the effect of civil m...

Six focus group discussions were conducted among 59 young people to explore the possible factors of premarital sex, ex-nuptial pregnancy, and infant abandonment. Thematic analysis revealed three associated with social crises; i)‘adjustment transition in life’- described living a dilemma between strong urge for more freedom sexuality adherence religious teaching; ii)' conflict relationships pare...

BACKGROUND This paper aims to examine the reproductive health and behaviors which might expose young people at risks of STIs/HIV and potential correlates of such behaviors among female college students in Tehran. METHODS This paper focuses on the study conducted on a sample of 1743 female undergraduate students in four multidisciplinary universities in Tehran during 2005- 2006 using a two-sta...

BACKGROUND The validity of studies on fecundability in Western countries has been questioned. The complexity of societal and cultural factors makes it difficult to dissect pure biological impact. Our aim was to assess couple fecundability in a population which to a large degree is unaffected by the same socio-cultural influences. METHODS We conducted a prospective study on time-to-pregnancy (...

This study investigated the influence of demographic factors on undergraduates’ perception of courtship and its relationship with premarital sex using the University of Abuja, Abuja as case study. Demographic factors identified in the study were family background, university environment, peers and social media. These factors were examined to determine their influence on the perception of underg...

Shelley Clark, Alissa Koski, Emily Smith-Greenaway Age at first marriage has been rising throughout sub-Saharan Africa for more than twenty-five years. The median age at first marriage has increased by an average of 1-2 years across the region but substantial variation in age at first marriage remains (Garenne 2004). In some western and eastern African countries including Burkina Faso, Guinea, ...