Comparison of the Effectiveness of Premarital Counseling Based on Couples’ Care and the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) on Perfectionism and Attitudes Toward Marriage Among Individuals Approaching Marriage
Keywords:
CARE program, Couples’ Care, PREP program, perfectionism, attitudes toward marriageAbstract
Objective: The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of premarital counseling based on Couples’ Care (CARE) and the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) on perfectionism and attitudes toward marriage among individuals approaching marriage.
Methods and Materials: This research employed a quasi-experimental design with a pretest–posttest control group and a two-month follow-up. The statistical population included all individuals who sought premarital counseling at clinics in District 6 of Tehran during the first six months of 2024. From these, 45 participants were selected from the clients of the Shiwa Psychological and Counseling Clinic through multistage sampling and screening with standardized instruments. They were randomly assigned to three groups of 15 (CARE intervention, PREP intervention, and control). The instruments included the Hill Perfectionism Questionnaire (Hill, 2004) and the Bratton and Rosen Marriage Attitude Scale (Bratton & Rosen, 1998). Data were analyzed using repeated-measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc tests in SPSS-26.
Findings: The findings showed that both premarital counseling approaches—CARE and PREP—significantly reduced perfectionism and improved attitudes toward marriage (p < .01). However, PREP demonstrated greater effectiveness across all variables, and its effects were more stable at the follow-up stage. The largest effect size was observed for negative perfectionism (η² = .601) under the PREP intervention. Moreover, attitudes toward marriage improved significantly more in the PREP group compared to the CARE group (p < .05).
Conclusion: It was concluded that both approaches are effective; however, PREP, as a structured program, is more suitable than CARE-based premarital counseling for enhancing marital readiness in individuals approaching marriage. These findings may inform the design of premarital educational programs.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Maryam Derakhshan Nejad (Author); Bahman Akbari (Corresponding Author); Maryam Mousavi (Author)
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