A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN MARRIAGE PRESSURE AND DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, STRESS ACROSS EMPLOYMENT STATUS AND GENDER

Abstract

Marriage is a deeply ingrained expectation in Pakistani society, which frequently puts young adults under a lot of psychological pressure. This study looked at how young, single men and women in Pakistan felt about marriage pressure and how much stress, anxiety, and depression they experienced. Convenience sampling was used to gather data from 258 participants in a quantitative, correlational design. Standardized tools including Pressure to Marry (Guner, 2023) and DASS21 (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995) were administered to carry a comparative analysis between marriage pressure and Depression, Anxiety and Stress across gender and employment status. The findings validated the psychological toll of societal expectations by showing that higher marriage pressure was significantly linked to higher levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. It's interesting to note that, in contrast to popular belief, male participants reported much higher levels of marital pressure than female participants, indicating changing gender roles and pressures in Pakistan. There were no notable variations between employed and unemployed participants. These results demonstrate the intricate relationship between gender, cultural norms, and mental health, underscoring the need for culturally competent mental health services and interventions that are adapted to the experiences of young adults negotiating social pressures associated with marriage in Pakistan.