Religion & Attitudes Toward Cohabitation

This research makes two theoretical arguments that counter one another. These theories are as follows:

1. There is no relationship between a person's level of religiosity and that person's attitudes toward the practice of pre-marital cohabitation.

2. There is a relationship between a person's level of religiosity and that person's attitudes toward the practice of pre-marital cohabitation.

Cohabitation is defined as the practice of unmarried heterosexual couples living together in a common residence (Wu, 1995, p. 212). Cohabitation is, among other things, a public acknowledgment of the existence of an intimate sexual relationship between the members of an unmarried heterosexual couple (Thornton, Axinn, & Hill, 1992, pp. 628-651). While cohabitation is not the only type of intimate nonmarital relationship, cohabitation draws attention because it openly challenges religious proscriptions against premarital or extra marital sexual intimacy, and because some people view the nonconformity of cohabitation as a threat to social stability.

The values of most religions represented in the United States encourage marriage and parenthood (Stolzenberg, Blair-Loy, & Waite, 1995, p. 84). The dogmas of these religions "promote the establishment and maintenance of family relationships" (p. 84). Family relationships imply conventional marriage to the members of thes

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tation found in Hispanic communities compared to Black and Anglo communities. Research Question One research question was investigated. This research question was as follows: Is there a relationship between a person's level of religiosity and that person's attitudes toward pre-marital cohabitation. Study Plan College and university students were surveyed to collect data to develop an answer to the research question. Methods Variable measures Two variables were structured into the research design for this study. The independent variable was the level of individual religiosity. Religiosity was measured on a five-point scale on which "1" represented the lowest level of religiosity and "5" represented the highest level of religiosity. The dependent variable was a person's attitude toward pre-marital cohabitation. Attitude toward pre-marital cohabitation was measured on a three-point scale on which "1" represented an attitude that pre-marital cohabitation was "always OK," and "3" represented an attitude that pre-marital cohabitation was "never OK." An additional explanatory variable was tested as a substitute independent variable for a person's level of religiosity. This alternative independent variable was a person's se
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Descriptive Analysis, Hypothesis Testing, Loomis Landale, Blair-Loy Waite, Methods Variable, Rausch Schaffer, South Spitze, Axinn Hill, Christian-non Fundamentalist, Introduction Theories, pre-marital cohabitation, level religiosity, pre-marital cohabitation ok, cohabitation ok, black women, single classification, questionnaire item, attitude pre-marital, anglo women, cohabiting relationships, attitude pre-marital cohabitation, person's level religiosity, classification level, level religiosity person's, relationship person's level,
Approximate Word count = 2311
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)

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