Effects of Premarital Education and Counselling on the Knowledge and Attitudes of University of Cape Coast Students towards Marriage

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of premarital education and counselling on the knowledge and attitudes of University of Cape Coast students towards marriage. The study was based on the quantitative research approach and adopted the quasi-experimental research design. The sample comprised 150 students selected using purposive and convenience sampling techniques. Data were collected using questionnaire comprising the Relationship Knowledge Questionnaire and the Marital Attitudes and Expectations Scale. The intervention was carried out for the two experimental groups (Premarital counselling and premarital education) in eight weeks. Data were analysed using One-Way and Two-Way Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The results showed that there was a statistically significant difference in the groups involved in the study in terms of their knowledge about marriage. Specifically, participants in the premarital education and premarital counselling groups had higher scores in terms of knowledge about marriage compared to the control group. The study also found that there was a significant difference in the post-test scores of the groups in terms of the attitude towards marriage. Specifically, participants in the premarital education and counselling groups had higher scores relating to their attitudes towards marriage when compared with the control group. It was concluded therefore, that premarital education and counselling improves the knowledge of students about marriage. It was recommended that to improve the knowledge and attitude of students regarding marriage, university counsellors and other marriage counsellors should adopt premarital education and counselling approaches in dealing with students.