Frequently Asked Questions about Marriage Education
- Is marriage education like therapy? Do you have to be a therapist to conduct marriage education?
- Is marriage education a recognized human service profession?
- Does it work? Is there research to support marriage education's effectiveness?
- How does marriage education reduce conflict?
- What about people who aren't married and don't plan to be?
- Will I be trained in a specific program method for relationship or marriage education?
- Can I learn to develop my own marriage or relationship education program?
- Can this kind of material really be taught online?
Is marriage education like therapy? Do you have to be a therapist to conduct marriage education?
No, not really. It is education that promotes personal and interpersonal development. It helps to enrich relationships and prevent problems. The goal of marriage education is to equip couples to prevent and resolve difficulties on their own.
You don't need to be a counselor or therapist to become a marriage educator. Research shows that besides mental health professionals, lay leaders, clergy, teachers, coaches and concerned individuals can teach the skills and insights that lead to lasting partnerships. Most of the social and emotional competencies can be effectively taught or modeled in group-settings like classrooms. Couples and individuals do not need to share personal issues or intense emotions in the classroom. Singles, engaged couples, newlyweds, and long-married or distressed couples can all benefit.
Is marriage education a recognized human service profession?
Recently, marriage education has been recognized as a human service activity that is worthy of government support. The reauthorization of the welfare reform bill of 1996 which has the provision for funding marriage education is expected to pass House and Senate approval. This legislation allows for 300 million dollars to be offered as seed funding for community organizations to offer marriage education programs in social service, educational and faith based contexts. These grants will be offered through regional offices of the Administration for Children and Families and will be distributed through the states that have marriage education or initiatives.
Through the CME courses, you will learn about funding resources, how to contact local marriage education coalitions and the ongoing debate regarding government involvement in marriage education. University of Bridgeport's CME program has been reviewed and highly recommended by government agencies and other marriage education professionals as a leading source of professional development.
Does it work? Is there research to support marriage education's effectiveness?
Yes -- there is a considerable and growing body of research that supports the efficacy of marriage and relationship programs. The CME program will acquaint students with this growing knowledge base of scientific research on marriage and relationship education. Recent research on premarital programs affirms they increase marital satisfaction and reduce divorce.
Over the past 30 years, researchers have discovered that marital success is not a matter of good fortune nor are the causes of failure a mystery. The best practices in marriage education are scientifically based, regularly refined based on the results of research and field experience, and have demonstrated positive effects. Studies have shown that couples can be taught critical skills that are useful for handling common relationship conflicts (e.g., money, children, chores, and sex). The evidence that couples can learn to communicate less negatively and more positively is strong. In some studies, higher risk couples have the best results.
How does marriage education reduce conflict?
When couples habitually avoid conflict and begin withdrawing emotionally from the relationship, research has shown this as a predictor of divorce. Resilient couples are those who know how to discuss their differences in ways that actually strengthen their relationship and improve intimacy. National advocate of marriage education, Diane Sollee has found that successful couples don't let their disagreements contaminate the rest of the relationship: "Behaviors for handling disagreement and conflict, for integrating change, and for expressing love, intimacy and appreciation can all be learned. Couples can unlearn the behaviors that predict divorce--that destroy love--and replace them with behaviors that keep love alive." In addition, relationship skills modeled at home may help to thwart patterns of divorce in future generations. Gains in personal growth also tend to generalize to relationships with co-workers, neighbors, peers, in-laws, etc.
What about people who aren't married and don't plan to be?
The knowledge and abilities gained from marriage education can enhance anyone's romantic partnerships and even their relations with family and co-workers. Singles testify to how they learn to avoid previous dating mistakes and gain a better understanding how to achieve the kind of partnership they are looking for, whether they choose to marry or not. Premarital programs can help teens and young adults develop a more realistic view of love and marriage and better grasp the role of personal responsibility in relationship building.
Will I be trained in a specific program method for relationship or marriage education?
The CME program at UB is designed to give you college credit if you want to become trained in one or more specific programs. More importantly, the online courses provide a multi-disciplinary base of knowledge, research and methods for a comprehensive understanding of marriage, love, relationship dynamics and the varied applications of already existing programs. There are many program-specific trainings you could choose from and in the special project options of the CME, you will be receive support and individual mentoring to develop a program of your own or to find the program that best suits your interest.
Can I learn to develop my own marriage or relationship education program?
Yes! This is a special feature of UB's CME program--you will learn to think like an educator and address the needs of a constituency that specifically concerns you. You may integrate the skills and insights from this program into your faith community, social agency, community program, therapy practice, high school or college ethics or psychology courses, etc. You can also apply these insights to improve your own marriage or intimate partnership.
Marriage education assumes that men and women are equally capable of developing the necessary abilities and understandings that deepen and sustain love for a lifetime. Most of this learning is applicable across class and cultural boundaries and also easily adapted for those in committed life partnerships or for special populations--stepfamilies, first-time parents, couples facing long separations, those with health challenges, etc.
Can this kind of material really be taught online?
Yes! Online learning involves a great deal of communication and is well-suited to the content of these courses. In addition, you may be 'in class' with people from around the world and will benefit greatly from exposure to multicultural perspectives. Web-based resources on marriage education will be integrated into course content as well as the use of texts and videos.
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