Abstract:
Marriage is an important social institution which is cherished and respected in most
African societies. However, the trend has changed as most of the contemporary youth in
Akropong Akuapem in the Eastern Region of Ghana do not seem to cherish or respect
marriage anymore. The purpose of this study was to find out the reasons for the change in
attitude towards marriage among the youth.
A semi-structured interview guide was used to elicit the views of the youth, traditional
leaders, religious leaders and social workers on the topic. Forty (40) respondents
comprising; thirty youth, four religious leaders, three traditional leaders and three social
workers were purposively sampled for the study. The data obtained was transcribed and
analysed under themes and sub-themes that emerged from the research questions.
Data from the study revealed that:
• Factors such as high cost of marriage, the job the youth engage in and the
educational attainment of the youth influenced their attitude negatively towards
marriage.
• It was also revealed that female youth desired to get married earlier than their male
counterparts.
• The study further revealed that religious affiliation of the youth had had positive
influence on their attitude towards marriage.
The study recommended that:
• Religious leaders, traditional leaders and social workers as well as parents should
educate the youth on the true meaning of marriage. Local newspapers like the
“Akuapem Amannee” of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana should be giving
weekly highlights on the importance of marriage. These will go a long way to
change the perception and the understanding of the youth about marriage.
• Religious leaders should be liberal when it comes to selection of future partners
among the youth. They should not be restricted to select from their Churches or one
particular sect only. This will enable the youth to have a wider field from which to
choose their suitors based on their values, love, belief and other important factors.
University of Education, Winneba http://ir.uew.edu.gh
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• Programmes that will give the youth insight-into issues on marriage such as
peer counselling, pre-marital counselling workshops on preparation towards
marriage, seminars on dating and other related topics on marriage should be
organized by religious bodies and social clubs. This will help the youth to
develop better attitude towards marriage.
Description:
A Thesis in the DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY AND
EDUCATION, FACULTY OF EDUCATIONAL STUDIES,
Submitted to the School of Research and Graduate Studies of
University of Education, Winneba, in partial fulfilment for the
award of the Degree of MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY IN
GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING.
APRIL 2008