Ukrainians prefer living in a nuclear family more than a decade ago, but their old-style values stop when it comes to premarital sex, according to the results of a national made public Friday. A whopping 68 per cent of modern Ukrainians said the proper way for people to live is in a traditional husband-and-wife relationship, as opposed to a mere 14 per cent believing marriage is a social custom that had outlived its usefulness, an official for the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) said.
The numbers for Ukrainian society in 1991 were 57 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively, according to KIIS statistics.
The demographic shift to family values has not, however, had much effect on Ukrainian enthusiasm for premarital sex, which has increased substantially over the last fifteen years, pollsters found.
More than 45 per cent of modern Ukrainians said they felt premarital sex was acceptable for everyone, while only 27 per cent told pollsters they opposed the idea in all cases.
Ukrainians were almost exactly evenly divided on premarital sex in 1991, with 38 per cent for and 36 per cent against, the survey showed.
Ukrainian men were somewhat more supportive of premarital sex than women, with 69 per cent nationwide in favour of sexual relations before marriage, as opposed to 55 per cent of women.
A clear division in attitudes on the issue also was visible between the country's cities and villages, with 36 per cent in urban areas absolutely opposed to premarital sex, and 44 per cent of rural region inhabitants against the idea.
The most conservative region in the country proved to be the ethic Ukrainian and traditionally Catholic western provinces, with a strong 54 per cent of respondents opposing premarital sex.
The most sexually-liberated region was Ukraine's traditionally laid-back and ethnically Russian Black Sea shore, where a mere 31 per cent of people there said they thought there was no good reason for premarital sex.
The poll was conducted in 100 villages, towns, and cities including all Ukrainian provinces. Its margin of error is 0.95 per cent, according to the KIIS report.
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