The dissertation is devoted to theoretical and empirical study of studentsʼ ideas about family roles as a model of marriage partners’ behavior as well as psychological conditions needed for forming ideas about them. A meaningful analysis of the typology of family roles, components and functions of young people’s ideas about family roles, and the potential of higher educational establishment for forming students’ ideas about family roles have been carried out.
Based on the results of the analysis of the scientific research, the psychological essence of the family roles as well as the content and the function of the studentʼs youth ideas about the family roles as models of the marriage partners behavior have been determined. It has been revealed that among a wide conglomerate of problematic questions regarding preparing young people for the family life, the issues that refer to the typology of family roles.
Both the theoretical and empirical grounds for the solution to the problem of forming the idea of family roles among student youth has been suggested in this research for the first time. It has been identified that the concept «youth’s ideas about family roles of marriage partners» reflects the deepest convictions of a young person that, in their turn, provide for typical reaction to the situation of delegation of responsibilities by role according to the life position formed. Psychological structure of the student youth’s idea about family roles covers three interrelated components: cognitive – a system of knowledge about family roles as models of marriage partners’ behavior; emotional and evaluating component – attitude to family life and responsibilities in the future family; behavioral component – identification behaviour in the role of a potential marriage partner.
It has also been inferred that the student youth’s ideas about family roles depend on a range of factors among which are those of objective nature: parent’s family of a young person, close friends, learning environment of the educational establishment, mass media, public opinion, and subjective nature: motivation; emotional reflexion; education; social maturity; temperament and character.
The following psychological conditions have been determined as those that contribute to forming ideas about family roles among student youth: students’ desire to expand their ideas about family roles and responsibilities; professors’ (curators’) knowledge, skills, abilities and desire to form students’ ideas about family roles and responsibilities; availability of psychological tools that enable formation of students’ ideas about family roles; posting psychological materials about family roles as models of marriage partners behaviour on popular social media networks; founding students communities aimed at studying models of harmonic family relations.
The typology of family roles as a basis for forming the ideas about models of marriage partnersʼ behavior has been proven. The following has been found out: a family can implement its intellectual and ideological function with the help of the following basic family roles: a mentor, a guru, an expert, an intellectual, a companion, an advisor, a solemate, an interlocutor, a teacher, a listener; a family can implement its moral and psychological function with the help of such family roles as: an activist, a guardian (or a defender), a friend, an initiator, a peacemaker, a motivator, a comforter; a family can implement its intimate and sexual function with the help of such basic family roles: a lover, a reproducer, a romantic; a family can realise its domestic and material and financial functions by means of the following roles: an earner, a household, a breadwinner, an organizer, a nanny, a mass activist, an entrepreneur, a buyer, a cook, a cleaner.
The typology of pathologising family roles includes the roles that: are determined by physiological and psychological addiction of a person, reflect the dependency on the marriage partner, reflect the superficial and contemptuous attitude towards family members.
A set of psychological tools that are necessary for forming studentsʼ ideas about patterns of marriage behavior have been developed. The purpose of the tools is to deepen the knowledge of student youth about important family roles and to raise their awareness of patterns of marriage partnersʼ behaviour that can affect the harmony of family life. The structure of psychological tools consists of two blocks: lectures and practical classes.
A set of practical recommendations on distribution of family roles and responsibilities for future marriage partners have been developed considering the results of theoretical and empirical research into the problem of forming ideas of family roles among student youth. They reflect science-based proposals, implementation of which is expected to help future marriage partners to understand the peculiarities of the distribution of family roles and responsibilities.
