Value-Matching Matrimonial Counterpart and Marital Satisfaction (Case Study: Noorabad City)

In Noorabad City, a county of Lorestan Province, the individuals’ systems of value, family structures, and marital relations have faced some changes along with the economic changes, increasing levels of education, expanding mass communication, enhancing migration from rural to urban areas, and augmenting women's participation in the society. When choosing a spouse, there is usually more emphasis on the couple’s similarities in terms of age, education, economy, and social activities. However, the system of culture and values as an underlying structure determines how couples can deal with their various issues of married life. In this regard, this article assessed the level of marital satisfaction based on the couples’ value systems in Noorabad City in Lorestan Province.

The present study was a quantitative, applied, and comparative research in terms of method, purpose, and analysis, and a survey in terms of implementation, respectively. For data collection, two questionnaires, including Schwartz Couples Value Scale and ENRICH Marital Satisfaction Questionnaire were used. The statistical population of this study consisted of couples in Noorabad City. The sample size was 200 couples, who were selected by multi-stage cluster sampling. For data analysis, the table of frequency distribution, indices of mean and standard deviation, t-test of two dependent groups, and analysis of variance were utilized.

 Discussion of Results & Conclusions 

The results showed that the women’s average score based on all aspects of their value system was higher than the men’s. The most and least differences between the couples’ value systems were related to the components of religion, independence, and power and those of moral characteristics and conformity, respectively. Therefore, it could be concluded that their value systems in Noorabad City were different. The men's value system was different in terms of age, but the couples' value systems were not significantly different in terms of education. The men’s score of marital satisfaction was higher than the women’s. The biggest and smallest differences between the couples' levels of satisfaction were related to the issues of spouse's personality, leisure time, children, and sex and the issue of financial supervision, respectively. The men and women were more satisfied with the issues of leisure time, personality, and ideological orientation and those of marital relationships, personality, and financial supervision, respectively. Marital satisfaction had a significant relationship with the men's levels of education, women's jobs, and family economic status. Their marital satisfaction was higher when the couples agreed on a value system. The correlation coefficients also revealed that an increase in the men's value system score based on the personal and transpersonal dimensions was correlated with an increase in the women's marital satisfaction and an increase in the women's value system score based on the personal dimension was correlated with an increase and decrease in the men's and women's satisfaction, respectively. Although the women’s average value system was higher than the men’s, this led to a disagreement in their value systems and marital dissatisfaction. In other words, acquisition of such value traits as independence, excitement, power, and success in increasing women's levels of education and employment in the society and emphasis on making a developmental society in the context and structure of Iranian society resulted in the women’s marital incompatibility. In general, it could be said that subjective (homogeneity in the value system) compared to objective (homogeneity in education, age, job, etc.) matching had a more important role in marital satisfaction. In other words, job, education, and social status did not necessarily equate to the value system of marriage and marital satisfaction. According to the findings, even the women’s higher average value system did not lead to marital adjustment.