1 Unit of Human Biology and Genetics, Triangle Regional Research and Development Center, Kfar-Qari’ 3007500, Israel.
2 Unit of Natural Sciences, Beit-Berl Academic College, Beit-Berl 4490500, Israel.
3 The Galilee Society: The Arab National Society for Research and Health Services, Shefa-Amr 2020000, Israel.
4 Child Neurology and Development Center, Hillel-Yaffe Medical Center, Hadera 3810000, Israel.
5 Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Haifa 3109600, Israel.
Research Article
World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2024, 23(02), 2167-2175
Article DOI: 10.30574/wjarr.2024.23.2.2502
Received on 11 July 2024; revised on 19 August 2024; accepted on 21 August 2024
Consanguineous marriages (CMs) have been a longstanding tradition in various communities worldwide, despite their known negative effects on future offspring. Our study aimed to determine the young adults' attitudes towards consanguinity in the Arab society of Israel, pertaining to various sociodemographic factors. The data included in this study were obtained from a national survey.
The results showed that 35.4% of adults supported CMs, with a significant gender disparity: 41.2% of males compared to 29.4% of females. A direct correlation between the participants' age and positive attitudes towards CMs was noticeable. A significant portion of married adults (~46%) supported CMs, while majority of the single adults (~42%) held neutral attitudes towards CMs. Additionally, a large majority of adults (~63%) with CMs type had positive attitudes towards consanguinity. Regarding the geographic distribution, and the religious affiliation of adults, notable variations in attitudes were observed. No significant association was found between the adults' education or employment, and their attitudes towards CMs, while an inverse relationship was observed between their income levels and these attitudes. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the parameters which prove to be the significant predictors for the adults' attitudes towards supporting CMs were males, south region, married participants, and CMs type.
The findings underscore that majority of the adults' attitudes towards CMs were either neutral or supporting this practice, therefore, effective strategies must be developed to increase the awareness of the young adults in relation to various health implications of CMs, thus improving the well-being of future offspring.
Consanguineous Marriage; Consanguinity; Attitudes; Young Adults; Sociodemographic Factors.
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Rajech Abedallah Sharkia, Mohammad Nimer Khatib, Ahmad Abed Sheikh-Muhammad, Muhammad Mahmoud Mahajnah and Abdelnaser Asad Zalan. Young adults' attitudes towards consanguinity in relation to various sociodemographic factors in the Arab society of Israel. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2024, 23(2), 2167-2175. Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2024.23.2.2502