Monogamous Marriage: Cornerstone of Western Societies

Marriage, specifically monogamous, lifelong committed heterosexual marriage, serves as the cornerstone for many Western civilizations; it is the foundation upon which societies have historically been built around (Hornberger, Zabriskie, & Freeman, 2010; Wall & Miller-McLemore, 2002). Karasu (2007) argued that marriage is the, “central way of organizing personal and social life” for a society (p.5). Marriage has been described as, “regulating the reproduction of children, families, society, [it] is a public sexual union that creates kinship obligations and sharing of resources between men, women, and the children their sexual union may produce” (Gallagher, 2002, p. 772). Karasu (2007) provided commentary as to whether marriage is a terminable

He concluded that marriage was in fact interminable because of its irreplaceable benefits to society such as providing appropriate ways of interacting with others, moral responsibilities, and expectations in relationships. In addition, Nock (2001) argued that no other institution provided the, “promise of permanency” that marriage did (p. 276, as cited in Karasu, 2007). In short, marriage has been defined as a critical organizing institution that provides benefits to individuals, families, and societies. Marriage has been underscored as an important institution and researched prolifically. However, there are yet questions to be answered as to how couples are defined as successful and what contributes to this success. Following is a review of relevant literature which precedes a research study aimed at exploring the marital quality of Evangelical Christians based upon their adherence to and belief in scripture statements regarding marriage. In short, marriage is a very beneficial

The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman, ' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

The expectation of the permanency of marriage, monogamy, and heterosexuality are implied in these verses. For instance, the statement that woman was created from a part of her male partner suggests a sense of complimentary and the statement that God has joined the two together suggest a sense of permanency and monogamy. However expectations have changed as cultural trends have influenced the view and practice of relationship arrangement in the postmodern twenty-first century. For example, 54% of Americans surveyed in 2012 reported that they found gay and lesbian relationships to be an acceptable alternative to heterosexual relationships (Hackl, Boyer, & Galupo, 2013). Also, research trends show an increase of cohabitation since 1995. According to comparative data taken from both the 1995 and 2002 National Survey of Family Growth, 45% of unmarried women age 19-44 were cohabiting in 1995, while this increased to 54% in 2002 (Kennedy & Bumpass,