Sociology

STUDY DESIGN
To conduct this study both primary and secondary sources were used.

PRIMARY SOURCES
The questionnaire will be used as a research instrument to elicit information from respondents. Since this research has both qualitative and quantitative elements, the choice of the data collection instruments should appropriate in order for us to be able to gather the most comprehensive data needed. Quite an important factor here is the characteristics of the people being surveyed. After careful considerations the method of questionnaire was chosen due to the following reasons
The qualitative data needed can be obtained through the question - answer form without my presence.
The respondents can be located at widely scattered places and hence it is not feasible for the person conducting the survey (me) to have a personal meeting with them
A personal meeting with a respondent requires many formalities to be taken care of
Certain information may be too confidential, so that people would not want to disclose their identity. Respondents would have the opportunity to write whatever they want and be discreet.

SECONDARY SOURCES
Secondary data sources included published books, articles, journals and magazines relevant to the issue of marriage. This source of data helped to define the purpose, the direction of the study, the research objectives and provided the context for the analysis and interpretation of findings of the primary data.

SAMPLING PROCEDURE
According to Kreuger and Neuman (2006, p.208-209), there are various reasons that define the choice of the researchers sampling method. Basically, it has to do with whether the research is quantitative or qualitative. Because, while the quantitative research places the emphasis on getting the representative sampling to enable the researcher study a lower number of issues higher numbers of people, the qualitative research focuses rather on the relevance to the study.

In the case of this particular study, since the research is both qualitative and quantitative, choosing an appropriate sampling procedure is very crucial. The quota sampling method has been chosen for the reason that it has some elements of stratification that give room for one to ensure certain differences in the sample.

THE SURVEYED PEOPLE
For this research the higher the number of people surveyed the better, but due to the limited time and resources not many people were chosen, however, the need to ensure the participation of people with varied socio- economic background or the heterogeneous population was taken into account.
       
SAMPLE SIZE
A total of 100 people were expected to be the respondents to the questionnaire, out of these I expect at least 80 questionnaires to be returned.

DRAFT QUESTIONNAIRE
SOCIAL CLASSES AND HOW THEY AFFECT THE SUCCESS OF MARRIAGE

Preamble
This study aims basically at studying the effect of social classes on the success of marriage. The study is strictly for the academic purposes and all answers would be handled with all the confidentiality that it deserves. Respondents are therefore asked to answer the following questions.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Instructions
1. For the multiple choice questions, ring the code number only.
2. For other questions, write your answer in the space provided.

A.  SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
1. Sex of respondent

1. Female   2.  Male


2.  Age of respondent
            1.18  24   2. 25  34  3. 35- 44. 5. 45- 54    6. Above 54

3. Religion        
    1. Christian   2 Muslim   3.Traditional believer   4. Other (specify)

4. a. If Christian, specify denomination ..
    b. If Muslim specify denomination  

5.  Level of Education
     1.None   2. Not above middle school   3. Not above High School 4. 1st Degree   5. Postgraduate  

6. Marital status        
      1. Single   2.Married.   3. Divorced  4.Seperated   4.Widowed

SINGLE
7. At what social class level will you like to marry
1. Upper Class 2. Middle class 3. Lower Class

b. From what social class do you intend choosing your wifehusband
1.  My social class   2. A higher social class   3. A lower social class    4. I do not mind the social class

 c. Give reason for your choice above..........

MARRIED
8. How long have you been married
1. 0-5 years   2. 6-15 years 3. 16-25 years 4. 26-35 years 5. Above 35 years

9.   How many children do you have
                                                                                           
10. Are you and your spouse of the same class in terms of income        
1. Yes   2. No   3.Not Sure

b. Are you and your spouse of the same class in terms of education
1. Yes   2. No.  3. Not Sure

11. Do you think your marriage has been successful so far
1. Yes     2. No     3 Not Sure  

b. What reasons do you think account for your answer above..

12. Has your class category affected your marriage in any way
      1. Yes     2. No    
b. Give reasons for your answer above

13. Do you think same class marriages succeed more than inter-class marriages
1. Yes     2. No    

14. If yes, do you know of any such marriage which has succeeded or failed, because the spouses are same class or inter-class
1. Yes     2. No    

15. Do you think there are other factors that are responsible for the marriage failure or success than the issue of social class
1. Yes     2. No    

16. If the answer was YES, specify any two.. .
b. If No, give the reason
...........................................................................................................................

DIVORCED
17. How long did your marriage last
1. 0-5 years   2. 6-10 years   3. 11 years and above

18. Were you and your spouse of the same social class
1. Yes   2. No

19. If NO, what was the difference
1. MoneyWealth   2. Education   3. Both

20. Do you think the social class difference contributed to the break up of the marriage
1. Yes   2. No

21. If NO what factors were most responsible

DATA ANALYSIS

AgeCategoriesFrequency18-241011.6325-341315.1235-442630.2345-541213.95Above  552529.07Total86100SexVariableFrequency Female4956.98Male3540.70No Entry22.33  Total86100.00 Table 1. 0                                                                                            
                                                                                                                     
Table 1.0 gives an idea of the gender distribution of the respondents. Out of the total 86, 49 females constituted 56 while 40.7 respondents were males. 2 persons did not indicate their sex. This shows that the sample was fairly balanced in terms of gender. Table 1.2, on the other hand, shows the age category of the respondents. While 10 are between the ages of 18 and 24, 13 people representing 15.12 are between the ages of 25 and 30. 26 persons were from the age group of between 35 and 44 while 12 respondents were between the ages of 45 and 54. 25 persons constituting 29.07 were above 55years. This gives and indication that the interest in issues of social class and marriage cuts across the age divide.                        
                 
Figure 1. 0                                                                                                                       Figure 1. 1

Figure 1.0 shows that 21 respondents are single while 40 and 19 people are married and divorced respectively. 6 people are separated for one reason or the other. The majority of respondents are either married or were previously married. They are experienced enough to answer questions relating to family issues. The level of education as shown in Table 1.3 is very significant. More than 70 have at least the first degree and this facilitated an understanding of the issues under review. It is also important to note the various levels of the employment of the respondents as shown by figure 1.1

ReligionCategoriesFrequencyChristianity4451.16Muslims2326.74Traditional 1011.63Others66.98Empty Responds33.49Total86100.00Level of EducationLevelFrequencyIlliterate44.65Middle School78.14High School1315.12First degree4248.84Post graduate2023.26Total86100.00Table 1.2                                                                   Table 1. 3

Table 1.2 shows 44 respondents are Christians, while 23 people are Muslims respondents. Traditional believers constitute 11.63 while 6 respondents have other religions. 3 persons did not fill in information. The religion plays a very important part in marriage. It is therefore important totake this factor into consideration conducting the research on marriage.

Figure 1.2                                                                                                           Figure 1.3

Figures 1.2 and 1.3 relate to the Singles (yet to marry). While figure 1.3 gives an idea as to the kind of class that some singles would want to choose their future partners from, figure 1.2 demonstrates their comparative levels of choice. 11 singles would want to marry from the same class as themselves while 10 want to marry from a class higher than themselves. None of the respondents opted for a class below theirs.  Some of the open ended reasons assigned to this included the following It is better this way, I want to maintain my class, That is what my family wants, I want someone who will motivate me and I do not want him to look down on me

Years in MarriageRangeFrequency0-51435.006-151435.0016-25820.0026-3525.00Above 3525.00 Total40100.00Class of Couple (Income)VariableFrequencyYes2870.00No1230.00Total40100.00Table 1.4                                                                                                                           Table 1.5

Table 1.4 shows the number of years some respondents (married) have been in marriage. About 70 have been in marriage for not more than 15 years while 4 persons representing 10 have been in marriage for as long as 26 years.  Table 1.5 on the other hand shows the class of current couples in terms of income. 28 respondents have the same income class with the spouse while 12 persons have other class categories. This also gives a general over view of the married persons who were interviewed.

Opinion on Success their of  MarriageVariableFrequencyYes2563No513Entry1025Total40100                    
Figure 1. 4                                                                                                                       Table 1.6

Figure 1.4 gives the class of current couples in terms of education. 28 respondents have the same educational class with their spouse, while 12 persons have other class categories. This also gives the degree of relationship in academic status of the married persons and their partners who responded. Table 1.6 shows the responds of married persons to the success of their marriage. 25 respondents out of 40 think their marriage is very successful while 5 persons representing 13 answered otherwise. Significantly, 10 persons constituting 25 of married respondents did not answer the question. This may be an indication that they are not too sure of the state of their marriage. Some of answers given on the follow up question about the some reason for the success of marriage included understanding each other because of same class category, Gods hand, patience and sacrifice.

Figure 1.5                                                                                                                               Figure 1.6

In figure 1.6, respondents were asked about the effects of class differences and similarities to their respective marriages. 28 out of 40 think that it has been helping in their success while 10 people did not think it was a factor. 2 persons did not respond. In figure 1.7, respondents were asked if they knew of marriages that have failed because of differences in social classes of couples and 58 responded in the affirmative while 17 respondents representing 43 responded otherwise.

Length of MarriageRangeFrequency0-51474,6-10421Above 10 Years15Total19100Different Class of SpouseVariableFrequencyPercentageYes526No1474Total19100

Table 1.7                                                                                                                      Table 1.8

Table 1.7 indicates that out of the 19 divorced respondents, 14 representing 74 were in marriage for not more than 5 years while 4 respondents divorced after a period ranging between 6 to10 years. 1 person representing 5 divorced after 10 years. In table 1.8 only 26 of divorcees were from the same class category while about 74 were couples belonging to higher or lower class categories

Figure 1.7                                                                                                                   Figure 1.8

Figure 1.7 shows that 13 respondents representing 68 of divorcee respondents attribute their divorce to differences in social class with spouse while 6 persons think other wise. Figure 1.8 is a summary of a cross tabulation of the relationship that exist between the three categories of respondent namely single, married and divorced. It shows that 52.5 of singles consider the same social class marriages as very important for marital success and would want to marry from their own social class. 63 of married people on the other hand are of the view that same class marriages are helpful for marital stability and 68 of divorcees consider same class marriages as a pre-requisite for marriage.

To sum it up, the cross tabulation was used to analyse the data. The conclusions support the hypothesis that the Same-Class marriages are more likely to succeed than Inter-Class marriages

DISCUSSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

INTRODUCTION
The foremost objective of this study was to examine the view or notion that social class differences affect the success of the marriage institution. Thus, the research sought to collect data and prove the positivity or negativity of the statement Same-Class marriages are more likely to succeed than Inter-Class marriages. This chapter discusses the findings from the research as presented in the table and diagrams as well as other critical information gathered during the period for which no appropriate form of quantification or diagrammatic representation could be made. Based on the discussions, some suggestions and recommendations would be made.

KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE ISSUES CONCERNING MARRIAGE
From the study it is obvious that the issues concerning marriage are not unknown to people of various age and gender groups. This may be attributed to the pomp and pageantry that heralds any occasion of marriage. It is also evident that it is the hope of young and single people to also experience marriage life with their dream partner. It is noteworthy that this eagerness may have an important role to play in recent discussions about the early knowledge of sexual relationship among teenagers. However, this research, while not disregarding the value and cost of a scientific research to establish this relationship in its own right, pivots from the argument that it will be more illuminating to find out why teenagers are rushing into mini marriages before their time is due.

DIVORCE RATE
According to the research, 22.09 of total respondents are divorcees. It is worth noting that out of this number 74 were in marriage for not more than five years. This goes to enforce the statistical impression outlined in the literature review which suggests that first timers in marriage have a 50 chance of breaking up. To this end the assertion that for every divorce, there is an increase in 10 of the chances of divorcing again (John, 2005, p.357) has some validity in my research that needs further investigation.

SANCTITY OF MARRIAGE
The religious inclination of the respondents irrespective of their persuasion has a lot of influence as far as their understanding of marriage is concerned. Despite the challenges of their marriage life, most of the respondents agreed on the sanctity of marriage and a good number had had their marriages solemnized in their respective religions. The assertion by Clark (1991), that marriage is an institution which should be respected at all times, (p.12) was confirmed in this research. It still remains a debate as some Catholic respondents lamented on the inability to grant a divorce when their marriages are not working at all. Perhaps one of the shortfalls of this research was its inability to include religious leaders as part of the respondents

SOCIAL CLASS AND MARRIAGE
This was the main issue of the research as far as marriage is concerned. This research identified three main sources of social classification, namely, education, finance and the social status. The statistical report indicates that
61.9 of respondents who are single would like to marry a person belonging to the upper class while 28.57 would prefer the middle class. But 52.38 would want to marry a person of the same class as themselves while 47.62 would settle for a partner above their own social class. From this, it can be concluded that the search for a life partner is highly influenced by the social status of the person. While a good number of singles are aspiring to marry within the upper class, they are also positioning themselves to be attracted to the representatives of the same social class. This observation is quite critical in the sense that it gives the caution that in the not too distant future, even where there is inter class marriages, the class difference would not be so wide as marriages are likely to be contracted between Middle Classes, Upper Classes and Middle-Upper. This notion is confirmed by the fact that more than 60 of currently married respondents are in the same social class (income and education) as their spouse.

The research inter alia noted that the notion that the social class differences have a role in the marital stability is true. This is given impetus by the overwhelming acknowledgement by both married respondents and divorcees. The cross tabulation effect on the importance of social class and the choice of a marriage partner as diagrammatically represented indicate that about 63 of married respondents and 68 of divorcee respondents support the assertion that social class differences affect the stability of marriage. Some of the reason they assigned to this as part of an open ended follow up question agrees with Hawkins and Coolidge (2002) that when a richer person marries a poorer one, the difference is not only money but it calls for much understanding in aspects of the manners and the lifestyle of the other half.

MARRIAGE AS A VOCATION
This research has specifically focused on the importance of the social class differences to the success of marriage and has overwhelmingly supported the need for spouses to select their partners as much as possible from the same social class for ease of life. The analysis also gives further information that is thought provoking. Out of the total number of divorcees, 26 were married from the same social class. 25 of married respondents as per the analysis do not think same-class marriage is so crucial. From the foregoing we can then conclude also that there are other factors that affect the stability of Marriage other than Social Class difference. The argument of Wardle and his colleagues (2003) that the faithfulness to your partner (p.23), Mayerson (1996) assertion that sex (p.11), Cutrona (2004) inclination that appreciation (p.90), Tichenors (1999) assertion that commitment, Davis and Butler (2004) argument that communication (p.237) and a strong spiritual foundation are a necessary ingredients in the management of a successful marriage.

LIMITATIONS OF THE RESEARCH
Though the study was largely a success, it was not without limitations.
The first limitation concerns the sample. The entire research and its conclusions are based on the views of only 86 respondents who were chosen at random, though there were certain guidelines
Secondly, the entire sample is limited to the extent of the responses of the surveyed people. Even though they were encouraged to be as frank as possible, the honesty could not be guaranteed as it was a voluntary disclosure.

Thirdly, the research was constrained by cultural factors. Since all the sample was selected from a particular culture, it is likely that the cultural issues with respect to marriage may have found its way into the answers of the respondents.
Fourthly, the issues of having to follow up on respondents to answer the questionnaire also limited the scope of the coverage. It took a long time to get people to volunteer information they considered to be personal.

Lastly, the challenge of raising funds to carry out the work can not be overlooked.
       
CONCLUSION
This study has examined the issue of the Social Classes and how that affects the Success of Marriage. This research is intended also to support the future researchers in this area being a good reference point to begin their studies. This research paper will be recommended as a guide for institutions that are involved in preparing people for marriage and offering various forms of marriage counseling services. These include churches, guidance service centers in schools and other establishments whose vision and focus are concomitant to the attempt to develop a better society.

As already stated, the institution of marriage is a vocation and not an occupation. As one of the respondents said, Marriage is a calling that needs a respond. According to the teaching of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom that is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so some, because they were made so by others some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it. (Matthew 1911-12, New American Bible)