Introduction
Pre-marital Commonly, this concept "sex before marriage" refers to people who are supposedly not yet of marriageable age or to adults who are having sexual relations before they eventually get married (Ramesh,et al, 2008). Merriam Webster claims that according to the dictionary, courtship is the amount of time when people engage in love activities that potentially result in marriage, or the time frame during which such activities take place. Sex before marriage is sexual behaviour engaged in by single people. In the past, having sex before getting married is seen as a moral dilemma that many cultures forbade and that many people regarded to be sin in many religions, although it has gained wider acceptance across the board since the 1960s, especially in Western nations. Several research have been conducted on how individual perceives courtship considering its impact on pre-marital sex (Bogle, 2008).
According to these research, young adults—both male and female—frequently participate in casual sex, often known as "campus courtship" or "hooking up," as opposed to the traditional courtship model, which forbids pre-marital sex. A sexual contact, including kissing and having intercourse, is widely referred to as "hooking up," especially amongst young men and women, without suggesting a legal commitment. Premarital sex, non-marital pregnancies, and a high rate of divorce each year have all significantly altered the traditional family structure. Due to western education, courtship, a practice that has been prevalent in Nigeria for decades, gained popularity. Undergraduate courtship has changed some of the traditional male and female interactions in African society. Men had to make calls to ladies in the pre-colonial era and be invited to visit the woman's home while being strictly supervised by the family. This kind of courtship followed traditional wooing guidelines that both men and women were required to follow. However, the perception of young men and women about romance and sex before marriage has indeed been completely reshaped by western education. The university setting gives young people the chance to go out and indulge in another type of campus romance known as "hooking up" away from the watchful eyes of their families and neighbors (Hettinger, 2007).
The mass media, social media, the internet, peers, shifting family customs, money, the university setting, and other elements have influenced how young people think and engage in courtship alongside contemporary social changes. Undergraduates' sexual conduct has been influenced by this awareness of courtship, especially in relation to courtship and its relationship to premarital sex.
Material and Method
This was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out at Osun State University. The study was carried out with the use of a semi-structured questionnaire. The information obtained from the finished instrument was calculated and analyzed using Statistical Product for Service Solutions version 21 software.
Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in this study as data analysis strategies. To examine the data and provide answers to the study objectives, descriptive statistics like frequency distribution and mean will be used. Compound frequency distributions were used to track respondents' replies to each of the instrument's questions.
Results
Socio-Demographics Characteristics of the Respondents
Table 1 shows the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents. The mean age of the respondents is 19.19±2.17, with about 50% of them are between 18-24years. More than two-thirds of the respondents were female, practiced Christianity (69.8%) and are the Yoruba (78.3%) tribe. The majority (98.5%) of the respondents were single and are 100 level (54.5%) students.
Table 1: Frequency distribution of respondents’ socio-demographic characteristics
| Variable | n = (387) | Percentage (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Age(years) | ||
| <18 | 182 | 47 |
| 18-24 | 193 | 49.9 |
| ≥25 | 12 | 3.1 |
| Mean±SD | 19.19±2.17 | |
| Gender | ||
| Male | 137 | 35.4 |
| Female | 250 | 64.6 |
| Ethnicity | ||
| Yoruba | 303 | 78.3 |
| Igbo | 53 | 13.7 |
| Hausa | 14 | 3.6 |
| Others | 17 | 4.4 |
| Religion | ||
| Islam | 115 | 29.7 |
| Christianity | 271 | 69.8 |
| Traditional | 1 | 0.3 |
| Marital status | ||
| Single | 379 | 98.5 |
| Married | 6 | 1.5 |
| Level | ||
| 100 | 211 | 54.5 |
| 200 | 87 | 22.5 |
| 300 | 64 | 16.5 |
| 400 | 18 | 4.7 |
| 500 | 7 | 1.8 |
| Department | ||
| Anatomy | 23 | 5.9 |
| Pharmacology | 26 | 6.7 |
| Physiology | 33 | 8.5 |
| Public health | 54 | 14 |
| Computer science | 10 | 2.6 |
| Medical laboratory science | 19 | 5 |
| Biochemistry | 8 | 2.1 |
| Law | 7 | 1.8 |
| Mechanical engineering | 8 | 2.1 |
| Nutrition & Dietetics | 19 | 5.1 |
| Radiography & radiation science | 26 | 6.7 |
| Nursing | 12 | 3.2 |
| Others (Zoology, Statistics, Plant Biology, MCB) | 142 | 36.3 |
| Faculty | ||
| Basic and Applied science | 39 | 10.1 |
| Basic Medical science | 63 | 16.1 |
| Engineering | 26 | 6.7 |
| FABAMSA | 29 | 9.4 |
| Health sciences | 43 | 11.1 |
| FBSS | 9 | 2.3 |
| FBMS | 14 | 3.7 |
| Others (BMS,CHS,LAW, College of Health) | 164 | 40.6 |
