The Effects of Mate Selection Factors on the Marital Satisfaction among the Urban Couples: A Social Exchange View

도시부부의 배우자 선택 요인이 결혼만족에 미치는 영향

This research is to examine the homogeneity in premarital resources that is exchanged in mate selection and its effect on marital satisfaction among the urban couples in the early period of marriage. Structured questionnaires from 310 urban couples who had been married less than three years were analyzed in this study. First the urban couples tended to seek homogamous selection in age educational level in socioeconomic status of the parents and themselves, Second those who had a spouse from his(her) own religious parental socioeconomic status showed higher level of marital satisfaction than those who had not. The rewards from personal traits such as physical attractiveness gender-role identity personality role-expectation value orientation and perceived reward found to have strong and positive associations with marital satisfaction. Parental approval and semi-arranged marriage were associated with marital satisfaction. Third perceived rewards from these resources and parental approval had significant effects on marital satisfaction; almost half of marital satisfaction was explained by these premarital factors.