Married student's experiences regarding marriage readiness: A qualitative study

Readiness for marriage is regarded as a subjective evaluation of one''s own readiness to take on the responsibilities and challenges of marriage and a predictor of marital satisfaction. So the aim of the present research was studying the lived experiences of marriage readiness among married students. The study was conducted in a qualitative method using a phenomenological approach. Thus 16 married students who had felt marriage readiness at the time of their marriage¡ were selected in a purposive sampling which were studied via in-depth and exploratory interviews. Then data were collected¡ registered¡ encoded and classified into 5 main categories. By analyzing the participants'' experiences¡ 551 primary codes¡ 17 subthemes¡ and five main themes¡ including interpersonal readiness¡ intrapersonal readiness¡ contextual readiness¡ meeting the needs¡ and social support were identified. The results showed that different factors such as gaining moral¡ emotional and mental readiness to marriage¡ gaining emotional and financial independence from family of origin¡ getting ready to sacrifice¡ forgiveness and commitment to spouse ¡ accepting the responsibilities and challenges of marital life¡ acquiring necessary interpersonal skills¡ considering some criteria for choosing spouse¡ making acquaintance with the spouse¡ getting some experiences from marital life of others and student life¡ age readiness¡ and others'' supports have an important role in preparing people for marriage. So all important factors should be noticed in marriage preparation programs which target adolescents and the youth.