Young women's attitudes toward premarital sexuality in relation to depression and shame: An intergenerational perspective

The current study investigated intergenerational transmission of premarital sexual attitudes that is transferred from mothers to daughters considering the mediation effect of religiosity. Examining the depressive symptoms and feelings of shame among the young women was another goal of this study. In addition, perceived parenting attitudes which are maternal warmth, overprotection, and rejection by the young women were also investigated. The participants were consisted of 118 female emerging adults aged between 18-25 and who are students at a university in Istanbul and their mothers (N=236). The data were gathered through online self-report questionnaires. Correlational analysis, regression analyses, and a dyadic mediation analysis were conducted. The results demonstrated that young women's premarital sexual attitudes predicted their feelings of shame. Their levels of shame predicted their depressive symptoms. Young women's depressive symptoms predicted their perceived maternal warmth, overprotection, and rejection. Moreover, it is found that there is an intergenerational transmission of premarital sexual attitudes from mothers to their daughters. Lastly, young women's religiosity mediated this transmission, whereas mother's religiosity did not predict the daughter's attitudes toward sexuality before marriage. Keywords: Intergenerational Transmission, Premarital Sexuality, Religiosity, Depression, Shame