本研究採用Stein(1981)的推拉分析框架,從價值觀與規範、外在結構、及內在個人情感與心理因素等三個面向,探討適婚的臺灣年輕世代,對於進入婚姻的考量因素為何?研究分析「臺灣青少年成長歷程研究」2017年之深度訪談資料,涵蓋12位未婚受訪者,平均年齡為31歲。分析結果顯示,他們大多數都不排斥結婚,但當下對於結婚並無強烈意願。其中,女性特別抗拒傳統婚姻價值觀的束縛,更會擔憂未來的姻親關係,而男性則是受到經濟能力高度期望的影響,延遲進入婚姻。原生家庭父母的關係,以及其朋友的婚姻經驗,也會對他們是否進入婚姻有明顯的影響。此外,訪談顯示臺灣社會對單身的包容、嚮往單身生活的自由自在、重視伴侶間情感和心靈契合、沒有將婚姻視為必要的人生經歷,這些是將年輕世代拉入單身行列的幾項重要關鍵。總而言之,本文的質性分析呼應了量化研究的結果,也觀察到現代年輕成人對於進入婚姻採取更為謹慎的態度,期待穩固個人經濟基礎、尋覓心靈相通的伴侶、建立有品質的親密關係;現代較開放的社會環境和價值觀的轉變,也讓他們有追求婚姻以外的生活方式的可能性。
The present study explores factors that affect young adults' choices to get married or to remain single by analyzing the in-depth qualitative interviews with 12 unmarried young adults from the Taiwan Youth Project. Stein's (1981) pushes and pulls concept is applied to our analytical framework. Under forces of push and of pull, three aspects of factors are investigated: social values and norms, external structure, and internal psychological factors. Results indicate that most of the young adults do not reject marriage, but they just do not want to get married at the current moment. The restriction of traditional values and worries about in-law's relationship are strong forces that push women away from marriage. Economic ability, on the other hand, is an obvious external structure factor that postpone young men's schedule to enter marriage. Bad marriage examples of parents and friends, however, affect both males' and females' attitudes toward getting married. While the society becomes friendly to singles, many young adults are fairly content with the freedom of being single, and think that marriage is not the inevitable process of adult life. Preferring characteristic and emotional compatibility over being married without them is the common pull forces of being single for men and women. The authors contend that young adults in contemporary Taiwan are more cautious about entering marriage, they would rather secure their wealth first and wait for the right person than compromise their ideal for the sake of being married. The open social environment and changes in values also give young adults a chance of pursuing lifestyles other than marriage.