MARRIAGE IN TRANSITION.

The data presented in this paper are based en a survey (n=165) conducted somewhere in north-western India. The results show that the institution of marriage is undergoing change in a number of ways. There is slow alteration in the range, the criteria and the procedure of selection. In accordance with changes in the conditions of existence, familism is waning and individualism is waxing. The wishes of the individuals concerned are struggling for dominance over the intentions of their families and kinsmen. Inspite of tensions and conflicts sometimes, by and large our interviewees are permanently and happily married. Facts and fiction coexist in the minds of our interviewees. The ideas are changing faster than the reality. Wide gaps between consciousness and reality are a source of stress. There is no single reason for what is going on. A multiplicity of facts is transforming the total socio-cultural phenomenon. Individualism, consumerism, rationalisation, are key explanatory categories. The direction of change is from traditionalism to rationalisation of social life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]