Predicting the Short- and Long-Term Helpfulness of Premarital Counseling: The Critical Role of Counseling Quality

This study seeks to uncover the important role of quality of premarital counseling in predicting the helpfulness of this service. Perceived quality of the church-based premarital counseling experience was predicted by infrequent church attendance. The short-term helpfulness of premarital counseling was predicted by greater quality of counseling but shorter duration, as well as less frequent church attendance and having had many quarrels before marriage. The long-term helpfulness of premarital counseling was predicted by greater short-term helpfulness and by greater counseling quality, as well as younger age at marriage. Only wives reported that their premarital counseling had been mandated. Overall, premarital counseling quality was found to be the strongest predictor of successful premarital outcomes in a religious setting.