Determinants of the Attitude towards Marriage and Family Formation in Yazd City, Iran

Various aspects of attitude and behaviors related to marriage and family formation have been changed over the recent decades in Iran. The present study investigates marital attitudes in five dimensions, including singlehood, marriage between non-relatives, priority of marriage over education for girls, marriage delay, and premarital heterosexual relationships. A survey was conducted among 723 women aged 15-49 years, who lived in the city of Yazd. A systematic random cluster sampling method was employed for data collection, which included 48 clusters of 15 households. Overall, the findings suggest that women’s attitudes towards various aspects of marriage and family formation do not greatly vary by age and marital status. In contrast, variables such as individualization, self-actualization and cultural capital are more important in explaining such differences. These results are consistent with those theoretical explanations which attempt to explain differences and changes in attitudes towards marriage and family in term of broader cultural and value shifts in contemporary societies. However, further studies are required to examine the process of integration between family attitudes, beliefs, and moralities with macro level values such as individualization, self-actualization and even a broad expectrum of other socio-cultural values such as the diffusion of development ideas, gender equality, post materialism, etc.