Date of Award

5-1998

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Departmental Honors

Department

Human Development and Family Studies

Abstract

Marriage is a social institution experienced by most adults at least once in their life-time. Like any other type of institution marriage has its own set of norms and roles that are culturally specific to the area where it is being practiced. Marriage has existed in some form in almost every culture throughout time. There are four major types of marriages practiced in the world today. They are polygynous (one husband and many wives), polyandrous (one wife and several husbands), multilateral (several people of both sexes existing as a part of one marriage) and monogamous (two partners usually one male and one female). Currently in the United States, the only socially excepted form of marriage is a monogamous relationship involving one wife and one husband and any children born or adopted into the union living in what is called a nuclear family (Rice, 1993).

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Faculty Mentor

Scot Allgood