Family-Life Education for Young Adults in North Macedonia: Needs, Perceptions, and Challenges

Abstract Book of the 8th International Conference on Future of Social Sciences and Humanities

Year: 2026

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Family-Life Education for Young Adults in North Macedonia: Needs, Perceptions, and Challenges

Makedonka Radulovic, Irena Avirovic Bundalevska, Angelka Keskinova

ABSTRACT:

Contemporary young adults in North Macedonia face numerous challenges in family relationships, yet family-life and marriage education remain largely absent from formal and non-formal educational curricula. This cross-sectional study explored the attitudes of 442 young adults (aged 18–25, 65.4 % female) toward family relationships, perceived family support, current sources of knowledge about marriage and parenthood, and the perceived need for systematic family-life education. Although most respondents (71.5 %) envision themselves married with their own family in the future and feel supported by their families, more than half (51.6 %) consider family-related topics insufficiently covered in the educational system. A large majority (87.7 %) believe that structured family-life education would positively influence family relationships, and 64.3 % are already familiar with the concept. International evidence from successful programs (COPE in Sweden and Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood in the United States) further underscores the effectiveness of such interventions in reducing behavioral problems in children, parental stress, and divorce rates. The findings highlight an urgent need to integrate comprehensive family-life education into both formal schooling and community-based programs in North Macedonia to better prepare young people for healthy and stable family life.

Keywords: Family Relations; Marital Education; Parental Support; Relationship Education; Youth Attitudes