The Effect of a Gender Education Program Based on the Com-B Model Developed for Newlywed Couples and Home Monitoring on Individuals and Families

Introduction and Aims:

The family, recognized as the smallest and most powerful social unit that forms society, is an arena where gender roles, gender identities, and inequalities are reproduced and developed. The establishment, maintenance, and continuation of a healthy marriage is the source of healthy families and, naturally, healthy individuals. Therefore, research on newly married individuals is valuable as it sheds light on future generations. This research began with the question, "How should effective gender education be designed to minimize gender inequality and the problems arising from it?" This research presents a study protocol to evaluate the effectiveness of a gender education program based on the Capacity, Opportunity, and Motivation to Behave (COM-B) model. Furthermore, this study aims to take solid steps in the first stage of family formation through a one-year follow-up of newly married couples and thus create healthy and strong families.

Method:

This study will be conducted as a two-phase, prospective, single-center, two-group (1:1) parallel design, pre-test-post-test randomized controlled trial. The Capacity, Opportunity, and Motivation Behavior (COM-B) model is a theoretical framework consisting of six components to understand and support behavior change. In the first phase, a gender education program based on the COM-B model (COMBTC) will be developed, and in the second phase, the effectiveness of COMBTC will be evaluated with 100 newly married couples. The sample will consist of 100 couples who have been married for no more than one month and live in central Şanlıurfa, divided into intervention and control groups at a 1:1 ratio. Participants in the intervention group will undergo a 3-week, multi-component education program based on the COM-B model, while participants in the control group will receive routine general advice. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, after the education, and at 6-11 months. Research data will be collected using a personal information form, a healthy family scale, a marital role expectations scale, a marital problem-solving scale, and a family harmony scale. The data will be evaluated using descriptive statistical analyses and relevant tests.