A Study on Parental Roles and Responsibilities among African Youths Intending to Marry Authors

Knowledge of parental roles and responsibilities is key to responsible parenting. This study examined the parenting and confidence level of persons intending to marry in Oyo State, Nigeria. The study is a cross-sectional descriptive study carried out in two (Akinyele and Ibadan North) Local Government Areas in Oyo State, Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25.0 for Windows. The study comprised 300 respondents;190 (63.2%) were males, and 110 (36.8%) were females. Less than half (42.3%) were fully aware of parental roles and responsibilities. Age and exposure to training were significantly associated with the knowledge of parental roles and responsibilities (p<0.001), while gender, type of marriage, and educational attainment were not (p>0.05). Training on parenthood was significantly higher among Christians (45.0%) and traditional worshipers (33.3%) than Muslims (13.6%). Less than half of all respondents (31–45%) could confidently say they would fulfil all expected parental roles and responsibilities assessed in this study. We advocate that parental education be included and well established in the educational curriculum and religious institutions, down to the marriage registries, to prepare the intending couples for parenthood.