Shkurko T.A., Lomova M.A. Socio-Psychological Factors of Legitimizing Partnership

Abstract: The authors of the article have studied the basic socio-psychological needs (including the need for control and affect) and their correlation in family relations (parameters of compatibility needs); parameters of psychological well-being (the ability to establish positive relations with others, the degree of autonomy, the degree of competence in managing the surroundings, personal growth, the availability of goals in life, the level of self-acceptance, the overall emotional evaluation of oneself and his or her own life, meaningfulness of life, the ability to perceive and integrate new experiences) and viability (the degree of involvement, level of control, risk acceptance) by partners who are married or cohabitate. 70 people participated in the research including 35 families (24 officially married families and 11 cohabitated families) who have been living together for 1 year at least and 30 years at most. Participants aged from 21 years old to 59 years old. The following empiric research methods have been used: 1. "Methods of diagnosing psychological well-being of the personality" (T. D. Shevelenkova, P. P. Fesenko) [24]; 2. "Test of viability" (D. A. Leontiev, D. I. Rasskazova) [11]; 3. The questionnaire «Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation» (V. Schutz, adapted by A. A. Rukavishnikov) [3]. As a method of data analysis the authors have used the method of comparison of two independent samples based on the Mann-Whitney test. The results of the research have shown that the basic socio-psychological needs do not influence on the preference for a certain type of marriage: cohabitation or official. The factors of legitimizing a partnership union include compatibility of socio-psychological needs of the partners based on the principle of complementarity and their degree of openness to the world. The most important sphere to legitimize of relationships of partners is the sphere of control. The study extends the existing social psychology notions about socio-psychological factors of legitimizing partnership relations and the role of personality's need for control, establishing and developing relations with other people.

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