INFLUENCE OF INTIMACY AND PERSONAL HYGIENE ON MARITAL STABILITY OF MARRIED ADULTS IN OYO STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study investigated the influence of intimacy and personal care on marital stability of married adults in Oyo State, Nigeria. An ex-post facto research design was used in the study. The study used a sample of 352 respondents. Along with demographic data, these respondents completed questionnaires that included questions about intimacy, personal hygiene, and marital stability. Suitable, standard instruments were used to measure both the independent and dependent variables. Multiple regression and the independent sample t-test were used to assess hypotheses. The findings show that marital stability is highly predicted by intimacy. The findings indicate that spousal personal cleanliness strongly predicts marital stability whereas the number of children did not significantly influence marital stability. Additionally, the results demonstrate that the number of kids did not significantly predict marital stability. Furthermore, the results showed that, married adults' marital stability would fluctuate depending on their gender. However, there is no discernible difference in marital stability between men and women. We find that marital stability is predicted by both intimacy and personal hygiene. The study therefore concludes that spouse should consciously work on raising their standards of hygiene and marital love, among other things.