Premarital counseling: A needs assessment among engaged individuals

Premarital Education: An Assessment of Program Efficacy*

“…A team of educators reviewed the existing empirical literature on premarital program effectiveness (e.g., Bader, Microys, Sinclair, Willett, & Conway, 1980;Bagarozzi & Bagarozzi, 1982;Markman & Hahlweg, 1993;Parish, 1992;Renick et al, 1992;Russell & Lyster, 1992;Stanley, Markman, St Peters, & Leber, 1995), relationship topics that participants or other sources identified as the most helpful components of premarital education (e.g., Boisvert, Ladouceur, Beaudry, & Freeston, 1995;Risch, Riley, & Lawler, 2003;Silliman & Schumm, 1989, 1995Silliman et al, 1992;Williams, 1992), and premarital education meta-analyses (e.g., Arcus, 1995;Giblin, 1996;Sayers et al, 1998).…”

“…The goals of MAP were to improve participants' knowledge concerning marital relationships and to teach healthy patterns of interacting that are believed to lead to improved readiness and preparation for the transition to marriage. The curriculum was comprised of eight sessions, which focused on the following topics: (1) introduction to the program and administration of the pretest; (2) relationship history, the concept of marriage, and individual and couple expectations for marriage (Giblin, 1994); (3) family of origin (Bader et al, 1980;Giblin, 1994;; (4) communication and conflict resolution skills (Arcus, 1995;Bader et al, 1980;Karney & Bradbury, 1995;Markman & Hahlweg, 1993;Silliman & Schumm, 1989;Williams, 1992); (5) marital roles and expectations, division of labor, and power and control (Arcus, 1995;Bader et al, 1980;Bagarozzi & Bagarozzi, 1982;Giblin, 1994); (6) finances, sexuality, intimacy, and relationships with in-laws (Arcus, 1995;Bader et al, 1980;Bagarozzi & Bagarozzi, 1982;Williams, 1992); (7) similarities and differences in personalities and beliefs, expression of love and anger, holidays, rituals, and traditions Silliman & Schumm, 1989); and (8) conflict around wedding planning and the administration of the posttest (Bader et al, 1980). (See Appendix A for additional information about each session.…”

Factors influencing the decision to participate in medical premarital examinations in Hubei Province, Mid-China

“…These factors include gender, age, ethnicity, residence, profession, education, and monthly income, but these factors only explain a limited part of variation in decisions to participate. In addition, studies have confirmed that awareness of PMS [23], knowledge of PMS [25-28] and attitudes towards PMS [29-31] have significant influence on whether or not premarital couples attend premarital screening. However, prior studies of PMS in China have only considered single factors in isolation, without simultaneously controlling for other factors.…”

Prevention Work: A Professional Responsibility for Marriage and Family Counselors

“…In addition, MFCs can also play a role in training other prevention professionals in understanding the dynamics of families and relationships (Williams, 1992). Currently, prevention work training programs are in existence in fields such as public health and education (Perry, Albee, Bloom, & Gullotta, 1996), and MFCs can contribute to the focus on family issues in these programs.…”