Spouse Selection Research Articles

Gender Gap in Spousal Education and Wealth After Marriage in India

This study examines gender-based disparities in spouse selection among parents in India. Our focus on studying this gender gap in low- and middle-income countries is important as arranged marriages are prevalent in many such societies, and the education and wealth of a groom can significantly impact his spouse and future generations’ long-term economic well-being. Our findings reveal that parents frequently arrange marriages for their daughters with more educated and wealthier grooms, while sons are often matched with brides of lower education. Notably, a novel finding of our study is that daughters, despite generally lower education levels, achieve higher combined educational attainment with their husbands than sons with their wives, especially in areas with lower literacy, income, and employment rates. Overall, our analysis brings to light an important facet of discriminatory societal norms that place a higher value on men’s financial success and women’s social status.

“Marry somebody who’s here”: negotiating hostile political discourse on arranged marriage

ABSTRACT Arranged marriage is associated in Western political discourse with “forced”, “sham” and transnational. Such discourse holds it to be an anachronistic practice in which parents are portrayed as misguidedly clinging on to “traditional customs” and understood to be premising ethnic and religious cultural reproduction above the needs and happiness of their children. Based on 18 months of ethnographic fieldwork including 44 semi-structured interviews, this paper analyses how an understudied yet implicated “group”, Somali Muslim parents, talk about spouse selection of/for their children. Building on the substantial scholarship on the marital practices of British Asians, this paper provides evidence which contradicts and complicates political assumptions and academic conclusions about the role of religion, “tradition”, and ethnic and cultural reproduction in arranged marriages, and brings into focus and problematizes the ongoing operation of “groupism” in relation to both ethnicity and religion.

Beliefs negatively mediate adolescents’ and adults’ knowledge about sickle cell disease prevention and relationship choices; a one-center exploratory study in Central Region, Ghana

BackgroundSickle cell disease (SCD) is a common monogenic inheritable condition in sub-Saharan Africa. 30% of Ghanaians are estimated to be carriers creating a condition for stable SCD penetrance. Being inheritable, SCD is scientifically preventable through intentional spousal selection. This study therefore explored young adults’ knowledge, beliefs and prevention strategies regarding SCD.MethodsThis exploratory study employed a mixed-methods approach (semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussion [FGD]) to explore the SCD knowledge and beliefs of participants (15–49 years). The data collection was intentionally sequential; initial administration of 386 questionnaires and then followed by the FGD (16 participants). FGD was thematically analysed whereas quantitative data was explored using structural equation modeling (SEM); p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant under two-tailed assumptions.ResultsWhereas 98.7% reported having heard about SCD, < 50% got the information through formal education. Overall, 49.7% knew their respective SCD status; the proportion increased with age (48.8% in < 30 years vs 64.4% in ≥ 30 years old), or higher degree status (48.8% in undergraduates vs 67.4% in postgraduates). Moreover, whereas nine-in-ten correctly identified that SCD is hereditable, three-in-ten believed that having a SCD child was a matter of fate. Our FGD revealed that whereas curses, and spiritual attack were misconceived as potential causes of SCD, stigmatization associated with SCD was a major concern. The SEM demonstrated that one’s knowledge about SCD prevention is significantly positively associated with relationship choices (b = 0.757, p < 0.05). Also, a participant’s knowledge about SCD preventive strategies was significantly associated with the individual’s beliefs about SCD (b = 0.335; p < 0.05). However, a participant’s SCD beliefs negatively mediated SCD preventive strategies-relationship choices association.ConclusionsSCD beliefs likely transform linear quantitative associations into a complex non-linear interaction; public health campaigns ought to unearth and address SCD beliefs to maximize achieving the intended targets.

Exploring Spouse Selection Concerns Among Men With Visual Impairments

Exploring Spouse Selection Concerns Among Men With Visual Impairments

Examining the Relationship between Cultural Globalization and Marriage Spaces: The Mediating Role of Modern Identity

Aim: The purpose of writing this article was to investigate the relationship between cultural globalization and marriage spaces, relying on the mediating role of modern identity. Methods: The research type was descriptive and survey methodology was used. The total sample size consisted of 271 students of Al-Zahra University (S) who were married between the years 2020 and 2023, and this number was able to fill out the Mirzaei’s (2021) Cultural Globalization and the Kianpour et al. (2015) and Afsharian (2021) Modern Identity Questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed and interpreted using SPSS and AMOS softwares. Results: In terms of effecting the dimensions of the dependent variable (spouse selection spaces), the highest rate was related to the relationship between individualism and the unsupervised spousal selection space (0.77); this means that the higher the level of individualism, the higher the number of unsupervised marriages and vice versa. The lowest level of correlation was also seen between the variables of using Iranian music and the atmosphere of passive supervision in choosing a spouse (0.16). Also, relying on the Sobel test, it was determined that the value of this statistic in all variables is greater than ±1.96, and this means that the modern identity variable has played a significant mediating role in the relationship between cultural globalization and spouse selection spaces. Conclusion: Considering the limitless expansion of communication and the internet and virtual space that is accessible to everyone, the religious-traditional fabric of Iranian society, as well as the decrease in the marriage rate and the increase in the divorce rate in the current era, it seems that the authorities should adopt appropriate policies and providing basic and important schemas by experts and university professors is more and more able to return the atmosphere of marriage and choosing a spouse to the past and its traditional state and also to overcome such alarming statistics related to the categories of marriage and divorce. In other words, it is necessary to think of measures to pay attention to the rich traditional culture so that the identity of Iranians does not suffer from contradictions and conflicts.

Factors Influencing Relationship Disengagement in Married Couples: A Qualitative Study

Background: Relationship disengagement is one of the most common reasons reported by couples when explaining the distress and dissolution of the marriage. The present study aimed to investigate the factors affecting relationship disengagement in Iranian couples. Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using the conventional content analysis approach. The participants were 24 Iranian married couples (in Mashhad) who were selected using non-random and purposive sampling. The data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with the couples and the interviews continued until data saturation. The collected were analyzed using Graneheim and Lundman’s qualitative content analysis method. Results: Data analysis revealed three themes (each with some categories): (1) Interpersonal factors (problems related to the family of origin, conflict in couple interactions, distancing behaviors, and ineffective spouse selection), (2) individual-personality factors (emotional instability and character traits), and (3) socioeconomic factors (financial and vocational issues and perceived fairness and inequality). Conclusion: The findings indicated that marital relationship disengagement leads to emotional apathy and dissolution of marital relationships. Couples therapy approaches should target the causes of relationship disengagement to increase the quality of couples’ relationships and prevent divorce. The insights from this study can be used for formulating treatment and preventive approaches to prevent couple relationship disengagement.

Marriages of love and convenience: The French dating market and the revolution of romantic love (19th-20th century)

ABSTRACT Did love conquer marriage between the 19th and 20th centuries in France? Does a personal choice imply a free choice? To date, no study has had access to sources that are both numerous and sufficiently stable over the vast period of the 19th and 20th centuries to allow a comprehensive examination of the simultaneous emergence of the love marriage norm and its impact on spouse selection. This paper sets out specifically to explore the issues of spouse selection and the eco-intimate changes in marriages, highlighting the evolution of the love marriage norm, using the archives of matrimonial agencies and advertisements from the 19th and 20th centuries. While the writings of the time debated the merits of marrying for money versus marrying for love, the dating market was serving a bourgeois clientele in search of homogamy. The study of agency operations shows how these marriages first unite two families and two heritages from the same milieu. This good match is seen as a necessary condition for mutual affection. When, in the 20th century, matrimonial ads more systematically enabled individuals to search for their spouse themselves, without the help of their family, these economic stakes did not disappear, but underwent a significant evolution. They are now put on the same level as moral and physical criteria. While homogamy was still preferred, it was no longer considered the only condition for a happy union.

명리 운명론과 자유의지의 상호작용에 관한 고찰

The purpose of this study is to illuminate the influence of fatalism on life and prevent the detriment of excessive reliance on fatalism driven by anxieties about the future. According to fatalism, one's destiny is determined at the moment of birth, implying that individuals with identical birth charts should follow similar life trajectories; however, diverse life paths exist. This signifies limitations in deterministic views of fate and the presence of various variables, including free will. Therefore, this study explores the existence and scope of free will within Myeongri fatalism, offering an in-depth examination of the interaction between fatalism and free will. To conduct this research, clinical data of individuals with identical birth charts leading different lives were analyzed to investigate the interplay between fatalism and free will through the influences of diverse internal circumstances and choices in crucial aspects such as family environment, occupation, and spouse selection. The results suggest that choices made through free will can foster the development of individual abilities and talents. Furthermore, the study concludes that Myeongri and free will are not contradictory concepts but can, in fact, mutually complement each other

Multi-Criteria Group Decision-Making with ELECTRE-III Method for Selection of Female Spouse in Pythagorean Neutrosophic Environment

Selecting a female partner in the 21st century is more challenging as compared to the 20th century. The globalized world, changing societal norms, and technology have increased the pool of potential partners, making it harder to find a compatible match. The prevalence of social media and online dating has also changed how people interact, leading to new challenges in establishing genuine connections. This paper presents a novel Multiple-Criteria Group Decision Making (MCGDM) model for selecting a female spouse using the ELECTRE-III method in a Pythagorean neutrosophic environment. The proposed model takes into account multiple criteria and addresses the challenges of handling conflicting and uncertain information. The Pythagorean neutrosophic set theory (PNST) is used to handle the vagueness and uncertainty of the decision-making process. The proposed model is validated using a case study of selecting a female spouse based on education, family background, beauty, and skill capability. The case study results demonstrate the proposed model's effectiveness in addressing the complexity and uncertainty of the decision-making process and providing a useful tool for decision-makers in selecting a spouse.

The Selection of Spouse With Free and Full Consent, A Comparison between Islam and UDHR Article 16 (A Comparative Study)

An Essential motive to choose this topic is that to share Islamic version about selection of spouse for marriage as compare to Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) Article 16 which also considered about selection of spouse. UDHR and Islam deliberated about significance of Marriage for both man and women to extend their family but have some difference of standard about Selection of spouse for Marriage .In this article we will share point of UDHR article 16 and Islamic vision about Selection of spouse for marriage .This article will also explain comparison between Islamic and United Nation Human right charter explanation about Selection of spouse with free and full consent. Islam allow boy or girl to choose their life partner will free and full consent under Islamic law but with the advice and guideline of parents or elder ,while UDHR authorized boy and girl to may choose their spouse with full authority without any limitation of race, color ,religion or nationality. Although all Muslim countries signed this United Nation Human right charter so after signing this charted they need to follow UN Human right charter all 30 articles but now they realize that this charter have difference criteria about selection of spouse which causing clash, same time United Nation Human Right Department considering around 1.8 Billion Muslim Population as major part of the world population ,second largest Religion of the world that Muslim can practice their religious beliefs freely with considering of International Human Right charter .This article will assist Muslim population to recognize, reconsideration and attempt to modification some articles of Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) especially regarding Spouse selection criteria for Marriage (Nikah), and UN Human right department need to re-consider this point under different religions and regional beliefs ,regional and culture value.

Investigating the Experience of Spouse Selection in Children of Divorce: AQualitative Research

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the experience of spouse selection in children of divorce. Methods: The present study was a qualitative phenomenological type. The present study's statistical population included 6 women and 4 men who wanted to divorce and had experienced the divorce of their parents in Kermanshah in 2022. The participants were selected by the available sampling method and the sampling continued until data saturation. The data were first recorded and coded to analyze the data, and then they were analyzed using the thematic analysis method. Findings: The results of the research included 6 main themes and 19 sub-themes of the participants' experiences. The sub-themes included negative social attitude, problems of not being distinguished from the family, psychological problems, communication problems with the spouse and the spouse's family, feeling valuable as a person different from the parents, and adapting and building a life different from the parents. Conclusion: The results of the research showed that the children of divorce have negative experiences during the formation of life and marriage, which can lead to wrong choices or incompatibility and mental health problems in them. On the other hand, they also have positive experiences that make them learn from their parent's mistakes and seek education and counseling services to improve their marital life satisfaction and lead a better life than their parents.

Genetic characteristics of spouse selection based on short tandem repeats in DNA and lunula count on fingertip

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the correlation of spouse selection with short tandem repeats (STRs) in DNA and with the number of fingertip lunulae to investigate the role of heredity in spouse selection.MethodsWe randomly selected a total of 286 couples (husband and wife) as a couple group while 200 paired subjects (a man randomly matched with a woman as a pair of subjects) were selected as a non-spouse group for DNA typing, and to investigate lunulae in spouse selection, a total of 554 couples were selected as a couple group and 500 pairs of subjects were selected as a control group.ResultsA significant difference of STR matching number (a large value implies a higher genetic similarity) between spouse group and non-spouse group were observed (12.3 ± 2.7 vs. 11.8 ± 2.6; p < 0.05). A significant difference of the lunula matching number (difference of lunula counts between a paired subjects, a lower value implies a higher genetic similarity) between two groups were also observed for the lunula counts (1.55 ± 1.88 vs. 3.53 ± 2.40; p < 0.01).ConclusionSignificant and unprecedented relationships were found between the couples and polymorphic STRs, and between spouse selection and lunula counts. Polymorphic STRs and fingertip lunulae counts provide an initial insight into the potentially important contributions that genetic characteristics may play a key role in spouse selection.

Examination of Cultural Components of Spouse Selection Based on Iranian Culture: A Qualitative Study

Introduction: Among the ways to improve the culture and values of Islamic society in Iran is identifying and introducing important components of spouse selection. Understanding these components can lead to the selection of a suitable spouse and prevent common mistakes in this area. Therefore, the present study aims to examine educational components of spouse selection in Iranian society.&#x0D; Methods: This qualitative study had an exploratory-descriptive nature and used the grounded theory and systematic Strauss and Corbin methods simultaneously to collect, execute, and analyze data. The research population included all family counselors, faculty members, and managers of counseling centers involved in marriage education and counseling in Yazd in 2022. Therefore, 32 participants were selected using purposive sampling as the research sample. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews which were recorded.&#x0D; Results: The results of open coding showed that out of 254 extracted propositions, 27 concepts were obtained in the form of 11 categories. Through axial coding, 5 main components (awareness of the philosophy of marriage, smart selection, literacy about marriage, rational-emotional strategies, and valuable style of marriage) were identified by integrating and connecting the categories. Selective coding also presented its final theory by designing a paradigmatic framework in a diagrammatic form.&#x0D; Conclusion: Identifying dimensions and components of spouse selection can facilitate the assessment and evaluation of young individuals on the brink of marriage by pre-marital counselors and couple therapists. This will help the young people make vital and important decisions in choosing a life partner.

The mechanism of assortative mating for educational attainment: a study of Finnish and Dutch twins and their spouses.

Introduction: Assortative mating refers describes a phenomenon in which individuals with similar phenotypic traits are more likely to mate and reproduce with each other; i.e. assortative mating occurs when individuals choose partners based on their similarity or dissimilarity in certain traits.to patterns of non-random mating of spouses leading to phenotypic resemblance. There are various theories about the its underlying mechanisms, which have different genetic consequences. Methods: We analyzed examined two possible mechanisms underlying assortative mating - phenotypic assortment and social homogamy - for educational attainment in two countries utilizing data of mono- and dizygotic twins and their spouses (1,451 Finnish and 1,616 Dutch twin-spouse pairs). Results: The spousal correlations were 0.51 in Finland and 0.45 in the Netherlands, to which phenotypic assortment contributed 0.35 and 0.30, and social homogamy 0.16 and 0.15, respectively. Conclusion: Both social homogamy and phenotypic assortment are important processes in spouse selection in Finland and the Netherlands. In both countries, phenotypic assortment contributes to a greater degree to the similarity of spouses than social homogamy.

Love and Gender Relations from the Perspective of Familism: Based on Fieldwork in Contemporary Rural North Zhejiang

Abstract In response to the academic debate about the “individualization” of the patterns of love and marriage in contemporary China, this article takes the spousal selection and marriage and love practices of peasants in northern Zhejiang since China’s reform and opening up as the basis of field study, and explores the roles and functions of love and gender relations and their relationship to ethical factors in the overall process of “spousal selection→marriage→family→giving birth.” We also find that although the “love” factor has become more and more important in the marriage practice of recent generations (especially among rural women) and has even become an indispensable key to starting marital family life, it has not fully established its own independent space and value. It has in fact been boosted, guided, and controlled by, and incorporated into, the traditional marriage and family pattern. This traditional pattern, with its own unique resilience, has integrated love into the family life cycle, gradually pulling it into the orbit of traditional marriage and family, and successfully carrying on the “sacred undertaking” of the ancestors. This overall characteristic is more pronounced in developed eastern coastal villages (among young women) than in less developed central and western rural areas (among young women). In terms of theory and methodology, the “individualization” of love and marriage among contemporary Chinese peasants needs to be put back into the framework of “familism” for in-depth reflection, rather than simply being understood from the standpoint of “individualization” and from the binary opposition between “individualism” and “familism.”

Love and Mate Selection Criteria in Blind Female Students: A Qualitative Study

Aim: Blindness can drastically change the life of the person, and can create some problems in psychological and social adaptation. The purpose of the present study was to examine the love experience and the criteria for choosing a spouse among blind female students. The method used in this study was interpretative phenomenological analysis.&#x0D; Methods: This research uses deep, exhaustive, and semi-structured interviews to assess 18 students. All interviews were recorded digitally, and were transcribed. The data were analyzed using van Manen’s‌ method.&#x0D; Findings: Six primary themes were emerged from the nature of participants’ lived experience, including ‘romantic assumptions and believes’, ‘romantic behaviors’, ‘the impact of love-making on life’, ‘attractive factor’ in the perception of love, and ‘intrapersonal criteria’, ‘interpersonal criteria’ in spouse selection.&#x0D; Conclusion: Sign and body language’ factor was among the most important communicative ways through which a blind girl makes a romantic relationship. ‘Commitment and fidelity’ were the most important criteria for spouse selection, and ‘health and beauty’ were the most important intrapersonal criteria.

Role of women in decision making: a case study of Pakhtuns of Tehkal, Peshawar, Pakistan

This paper discusses women's decision-making role in the affluent patriarchal households of Pakhtuns. The patriarchy is popularly believed to be an impediment for women to participate in decision-making at the household level. The study analyses the participation of women in decision-making related to children's spouse selection, education and health, and family planning. The study also focused on women's role in decision-making related to household expenditure and the purchase of household items and immovable property. The study was qualitative, and participant observation and in-depth interviews were used as data collection tools. The study found that women's age, education, marital status, marriage duration, and family structure determine women's decision-making. The study reveals that despite the patriarchal system of households in affluent Pakhtun households, women participated in the decisions making. They participated in decision-making related to children's health, education, and selection of the spouse for their children. Women had a say in family planning. They also participated in the decisions related to household expenditure and purchasing household items. Participation of women in decisions related to the purchase of immovable items was limited.

Prioritization of Partner Selection Criteria According the Perceptions of Female Students of Qom University of Medical Sciences

Background and Objectives Marriage is one of the effective factors that can promote mental health and lifestyle and reduce the risk of individual and social disorders. This study aims to prioritize the criteria for partner selection according to the perceptions of female students of Qom University of Medical Sciences (QUMS) in 2017. Methods: This is descriptive-analytical study with a cross-sectional design was conducted in 2017. The study population consists of all single female students of QUMS, of whom 373 were selected by multi-stage sampling method. The instrument was the 22-item Preference Criteria of Spouse Selection Inventory (PCSSI) with acceptable validity and reliability. Data were analyzed in SPSS software, version 20 statistical software using descriptive statistics and Friedman’s test, Chi-square test, t-test, and one-way analysis of variance. Results: The age range of the participants was 18-38 years, and their semester range was 1-15. The results of Friedman test showed a significant difference between the mean ranks of partner selection criteria. Mental health had the highest priority, while being from the same ethnicity had the lowest priority. There was a significant negative correlation between age and importance of partner selection criteria (P&lt;0.001). In addition, there was a significant difference between students with associate degree and the students with bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and PhD degree in terms of the importance of partner selection criteria (P&lt;0.001). Conclusion: Female students of QUMS pay more attention to mental health, responsibility, and chastity criteria in choosing a partner.

Predicting the Inclination to Extramarital Relations Based on Sexual Assertiveness and Spouse Selection Criteria in Married Women

Objective: The present research aimed to predict the inclination towards extramarital relations based on sexual assertiveness and spouse selection criteria in married women of Yasuj city. Materials and Methods: The research method was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population consisted of all married women in Yasuj city in 2022. From this population, 384 individuals were selected through two-stage cluster sampling for the study. Data were collected using questionnaires: the Spouse Selection Criteria by Rafahi et al. (2008), the Extramarital Relations by Whitley (2006), and the Sexual Assertiveness by Halbert (1991). After data collection and extraction, participants' scores were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis through the SPSS-24 statistical software. Findings: The correlation coefficients indicated a significant negative relationship between sexual assertiveness and spouse selection criteria (both content and process) with the inclination towards extramarital relations in married women of Yasuj city. Furthermore, regression analysis showed that sexual assertiveness and spouse selection criteria (content and process) could negatively predict the inclination towards extramarital relations in these women. Conclusion: The findings of this study confirm the role of spouse selection criteria and sexual assertiveness as predictive variables for the likelihood of inclination towards extramarital relations.

The influence of of ideal actual and agreement of spouse selection criteria on marital quality of married couples

The influence of of ideal actual and agreement of spouse selection criteria on marital quality of married couples