Examining Undergraduates' Perspectives on the Concepts Family and Marriage

The current study aimed to examine undergraduates' perspectives on the concepts family and marriage, what they expect of the person that they want to marry, their opinions on having a family and on the necessity of having a child to become a family, and if love is enough to start and become a family or not. The participants were 61 undergraduates matriculating at Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University in the 2020-2021 Academic Year. Data were collected in written by open-ended questions and were qualitatively content-analyzed. The participants' views showed that marriage meant humanitarian values and feelings, a precious entity and mostly infinite trust. They wanted their future-partners to have moral values and to be devoted to family. The participants related the importance of having a family to human nature and faith, and attached importance to loving and being loved, having a partner as an attribute of human nature, and raising children beneficial to society. They did not regard having a child as the chief condition of becoming a family, and thought that what is important is to live in peace together. They also pointed out that love alone is not enough to become a family, respect and loyalty are very important along with responsibility and financial status. The results may be helpful in knowing more about young people who are expected to raise future generations, and taking necessary measures accordingly. The results may be used as a guide by academicians and families.