Global Standard in Premarital Relationship Assessment

Understand Your Relationship More Clearly Before Saying “I Do”

PREPARE/ENRICH: Introducing PREPARE/ENRICH for Persian-speaking couples.

Marriage is not simply a decision between two people who love each other. Each person enters the relationship with a family history, communication style, emotional experiences, expectations, values, attitudes toward money, beliefs about the roles of women and men, and a different way of responding to disagreements.

Many of these differences remain unseen during the dating period, not necessarily because someone is hiding something, but because the relationship has not yet encountered circumstances that activate its deeper patterns.

Two people may agree about their love for each other and their general life goals but still not know how they will treat one another during conflict.

Does one person seek an immediate conversation while the other withdraws?

Does silence help one partner calm down while making the other feel rejected?

Do they share the same understanding of finances, having children, extended family, immigration, sexual intimacy, the division of responsibilities, or career plans?

Are their current differences negotiable, or do they involve fundamental values on which neither person is willing to compromise?

Professional premarital counselling is not intended to make the decision for the couple or use a score to declare that they are “made for each other” or “should not get married.”

Its purpose is to help the couple examine their relationship more carefully and realistically before making a major decision. One of the most recognized and well-established tools worldwide for this purpose is the PREPARE/ENRICH assessment, which has a history of more than 45 years and has been used in over 100 countries.

What Is PREPARE/ENRICH?

PREPARE/ENRICH is not an entertainment quiz, an online compatibility test, or a simple personality-typing tool. It is a comprehensive relationship assessment combined with a process of feedback and skill development.

The PREPARE version is designed primarily for couples who are seriously dating, engaged, or considering marriage. ENRICH is intended for married couples and those who wish to improve the quality of their relationship.

The assessment questions are partially personalized according to each couple’s characteristics and stage of life. A couple preparing for a first marriage will not receive exactly the same set of questions as a couple with children, a blended family, or partners with cultural or religious differences.

This feature allows the assessment to produce a picture more closely aligned with the couple’s actual relationship rather than a general report.

The assessment must be administered through a Certified PREPARE/ENRICH Facilitator. Each partner completes the questionnaire independently and without consulting the other. Once both questionnaires have been completed, the professional report becomes available to the facilitator, and the results are reviewed during feedback sessions. The scores themselves are not the end of the process. The most important work begins when the responses are understood within the context of each person’s history, culture, immigration experience, family of origin, and the couple’s actual interactions.

Why Is PREPARE/ENRICH Considered a Global Standard?

Within the field of premarital assessment, no test can be called the absolute “best” without considering its purpose, population, and method of administration. Nevertheless, because PREPARE/ENRICH combines extensive research support, a long history, widespread use, large couple-based norms, and strong clinical applications, it is one of the closest available options to a global gold standard for structured premarital assessment.

The assessment has been revised repeatedly over several decades. Various studies have examined its reliability, validity, and ability to differentiate relationship patterns. An evaluation published in the Mental Measurements Yearbook also found noteworthy evidence supporting the reliability and validity of its scores and its usefulness in strengthening couple relationships. Classic longitudinal PREPARE studies have shown that patterns in couples’ engagement-period scores may be meaningfully associated with their later marital outcomes. In one three-year follow-up study, the assessment distinguished couples who later reported happy marriages from those who divorced with approximately 80% accuracy.

This figure does not mean that the test can predict a couple’s destiny. It cannot determine with certainty who will eventually divorce, and its results should never be treated as a definitive judgment.

The scientific meaning of this finding is that the patterns measured by PREPARE/ENRICH are associated with the future quality and stability of a relationship. These patterns can therefore become subjects for discussion and intervention before marriage.

The PREPARE/ENRICH organization also reports that premarital education based on this program has been associated with a 31% reduction in the risk of divorce.

The program’s value is not limited to identifying areas of vulnerability. After recognizing those areas, couples receive specific exercises in communication, conflict resolution, listening, assertive dialogue, and shared planning.

PREPARE/ENRICH is therefore not merely a “test.” It is a roadmap for conversation and relationship growth.

What Exactly Does the Assessment Measure?

Communication and Listening to Each Other

Does each partner feel heard and understood?
Can the couple communicate openly about their feelings and needs?
Do their conversations turn into criticism, defensiveness, withdrawal, or misunderstanding?

This section does not merely measure how often the couple disagrees. It examines the quality of communication and each person’s experience of being in conversation with their partner.

Conflict and Problem-Solving

Having differences is natural. The central question is how the couple responds to those differences.

The assessment explores the extent to which both partners can remain calm during disagreements, define the problem, negotiate, and reach a fair solution. It also helps determine whether problems are genuinely resolved or repeatedly return in a different form.

Emotional and Sexual Intimacy

Satisfaction with emotional closeness, affection, expressions of love, and expectations regarding the sexual relationship are important areas of assessment.

The purpose is not to enter the most private part of the relationship in a judgmental manner. It is to create a safe space in which the couple can discuss their needs, boundaries, differences in sexual desire, and each person’s understanding of intimacy.

Finances

Attitudes toward saving, spending, debt, joint or separate accounts, financial responsibilities, supporting relatives, and economic priorities can become major sources of conflict after marriage.

For immigrant couples, matters such as financially supporting relatives in their country of origin, employment instability, and differences in economic power may become particularly significant.

Roles and Responsibilities

The assessment reveals each partner’s expectations regarding household responsibilities, employment, decision-making, daily duties, and gender roles.

Sometimes, both partners say that they believe in equality but do not share the same definition of what “equality” means. These differences need to be translated into clear expectations before marriage.

Personality and Individual Patterns

The SCOPE personality profile considers characteristics such as sociability, flexibility, organization, emotional stability, and openness.

Personality differences are not inherently problematic. What matters is how the couple interprets and manages those differences.

A highly detail-oriented person may see a flexible partner as irresponsible, while the flexible partner may experience that same attention to detail as controlling behaviour.

Assertiveness, Self-Confidence, Avoidance, and Dominance

Can both partners express their needs and disagreements without fear?
Does one person constantly give in to preserve the relationship?
Does one partner take control of the decisions?
Have silence and avoidance replaced genuine communication?

During the dating period, these patterns may be mistaken for “kindness” or “being easygoing.” Within marriage, however, they may lead to inequality, hidden resentment, and emotional distance.

Family of Origin, Friends, and Intergenerational Boundaries

The assessment considers the couple’s closeness with their families, the degree of family involvement or support, approaches to boundaries, family loyalties, and expectations associated with being a daughter-in-law, son-in-law, or adult child.

This area is particularly important for Persian-speaking couples because the decision to marry often extends beyond the two individuals and activates a broader network of family relationships and expectations.

Having Children and Parenting

Depending on the couple’s circumstances, the assessment may address whether they want children, when they want them, the desired number of children, approaches to discipline and parenting, parental roles, and issues affecting blended families.

General agreement about “having children” is not enough. Both partners’ understanding of parental responsibilities and parenting styles must also be clarified.

Beliefs, Values, and Spirituality

The assessment can identify areas of alignment and difference in religious, spiritual, and personal values.

For intercultural or interfaith couples, subjects such as the marriage ceremony, raising children, religious or cultural occasions, and relationships with extended family need to be explored beyond general answers.

Stress, Health, Leisure, and Life Direction

Work pressure, education, immigration, residency status, health, leisure preferences, shared time, and major life transitions may also appear in the report.

Sometimes, a problem appears to be about “communication” but is actually rooted in exhaustion, financial pressure, or uncertainty about the future.

What Does the Assessment Report Look Like?

PREPARE/ENRICH produces a detailed, multilayered professional report. It generally includes:

✓An overall classification of the couple’s relationship pattern
✓A summary of strengths and areas requiring growth
✓Overall relationship satisfaction
✓The idealistic distortion indicator
✓Areas of agreement and disagreement between the partners’ responses
✓Personality and stress profiles
✓Recommended exercises

The report does not merely indicate that a communication score is “high” or “low.” In many sections, it can show:

✓Areas in which both partners share a positive perspective
✓Areas in which both partners feel dissatisfied or concerned
✓Subjects they perceive differently
✓Issues that are important to one person but are not yet recognized as problems by the other
✓Strengths that can help the couple address more difficult areas

The report may also place the couple within one of several general relationship types. This classification is not an identity label or psychiatric diagnosis. It is a summary designed to clarify the relationship’s current pattern.

There is no passing or failing score. A low score on one scale does not mean the marriage will fail. It indicates that the particular area requires additional conversation, practice, or therapy before a final decision is made.

How Does a Couple Complete the Assessment?

The process begins with an initial session to discuss the couple’s goals, stage of relationship, concerns, and whether the assessment is appropriate for them.

The assessment is then activated through the facilitator’s official account. Each partner receives an individual link or login information and completes the questionnaire independently.

Completing the assessment together or attempting to coordinate answers reduces the validity of the process.

Once both questionnaires have been completed, the report is sent directly to the facilitator. The results should not be presented without professional interpretation as a collection of potentially alarming numbers.

During subsequent sessions, the couple’s strengths, significant differences, and areas for growth are reviewed step by step. The program’s official structure generally recommends four to eight feedback sessions, but the number can be adjusted according to the relationship’s complexity, the couple’s decisions, and the issues identified.

Why Is It Important for the Assessment to Be Administered by a Clinical Professional?

Formal PREPARE/ENRICH training and certification are required to become a facilitator. However, the program does not require an academic degree or professional therapy licence for admission to its facilitator training. Therefore, not every facilitator is necessarily a psychologist or couples therapist.

This distinction is extremely important.

A facilitator may be able to administer the assessment and explain its structure and results. A clinical professional, however, can move beyond the scores. They can distinguish ordinary conflict from violence and coercive control, recognize the effects of trauma and attachment, consider symptoms of depression, anxiety, or individual psychological disorders within the relationship process, assess risk, and determine when joint sessions may be inappropriate or when separate treatment is required.

When used by a trained therapist, the assessment does not replace clinical judgment; it makes that judgment more precise. Its real strength lies in combining standardized data, clinical interviewing, cultural understanding, and couples therapy interventions.

Dr. Taraneh Moazzeni’s Professional Qualifications for Administering PREPARE/ENRICH

Dr. Taraneh Moazzeni holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and the professional designations of Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC), Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC), and Canadian Certified Counsellor–Supervisor (CCS).

In addition to her clinical experience working with couples and family concerns, she has completed official PREPARE/ENRICH training and has been approved as a Certified PREPARE/ENRICH Facilitator.

The assessment is therefore activated through her official account, the professional report is provided directly to her, and feedback sessions are conducted according to the program’s established protocol.

The benefit of working with Dr. Moazzeni extends beyond access to the assessment. Results are interpreted through a confidential clinical process adapted to the couple’s actual circumstances. Her professional background in clinical psychology and supervision allows responses to be considered from the perspectives of attachment patterns, emotional regulation, conflict, trauma, family of origin, boundaries, and mental health.

For immigrant couples, the relationship assessment can also take account of immigration-related pressures, changes in roles, distance from family, financial dependence, residency status, and differences in how quickly each partner adapts to the new environment.

The Persian-Language Limitation and Its Clinical Solution

PREPARE/ENRICH is available in several languages, but an official, normed Persian version is not currently included among its language options.

Couples must therefore have sufficient proficiency to read and understand the English version or another officially available version of the assessment.

A self-translated questionnaire cannot be substituted as a valid Persian version because changing the wording may alter the meaning of the questions and affect the assessment’s psychometric properties.

However, Dr. Moazzeni can conduct all initial sessions, feedback sessions, interpretation of results, and clinical exercises in Persian.

This is an important advantage for Persian-speaking couples because concepts such as respect, honour, filial responsibility, family reputation, sacrifice, independence, family boundaries, and gender roles cannot always be understood through literal translation. A therapist who shares the couple’s language can explore the cultural meaning of their responses without altering the assessment’s standards through an unofficial translation.

If either partner does not have sufficient proficiency in one of the assessment’s available languages, this will be considered before the assessment is administered. Under those circumstances, a structured clinical interview and complementary methods may be more appropriate than relying directly on the scores.

Table

For a structured and comprehensive premarital program, PREPARE/ENRICH is generally the best first choice.

RELATE can be useful for analyzing individual and family contexts, while the Gottman Relationship Checkup is particularly strong for an in-depth therapeutic assessment of a relationship.

These instruments are not necessarily direct competitors. Depending on the couple’s needs, a therapist may use Gottman methods, attachment-based approaches, or other established interventions alongside the PREPARE/ENRICH report.

What Does This Assessment Not Do?

PREPARE/ENRICH is not a device for identifying the “right spouse.” It cannot replace honesty, responsibility, or the capacity for change, nor can it guarantee the future.

The presence of violence, threats, coercive control, active addiction, unresolved infidelity, or a severe psychological crisis should not be reduced to a relationship score. These concerns require clinical assessment and safer decision-making.

The ultimate goal is not for the couple to receive an attractive report. It is to help both partners discuss subjects before marriage that may later determine their quality of life, manage disagreements without humiliation, identify hidden expectations, and make their decision with a more realistic understanding of the relationship.

An Opportunity to Make a More Informed Decision

Love is essential for beginning a relationship, but it is not sufficient to build a lasting marriage.

A healthy relationship requires the ability to communicate, remain flexible, establish boundaries, accept responsibility, create emotional security, and resolve disagreements.

PREPARE/ENRICH helps move these factors beyond guesswork and personal assumptions before marriage, transforming them into clear subjects for discussion and growth.

Persian-speaking couples who are seriously dating, engaged, or considering marriage can arrange an official PREPARE/ENRICH assessment and receive Persian-language feedback sessions with Dr. Taraneh Moazzeni.

This process offers an opportunity to make a decision based neither on fear nor solely on emotion, but on a deeper understanding of yourself, your partner, and the structure of your relationship.

Dr.Taraneh Moazzeni

PhD, RCC, CCC, ACS, CCS

Dr. Taraneh Moazzeni, holding a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, a Registered Clinical Counsellor in British Columbia (RCC), and a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC), has years of specialized experience supporting individuals, couples, and families. Her lived experience of immigration, combined with up-to-date clinical knowledge and continuous professional training, enables her to understand the challenges and complexities of clients’ lives not only through the lens of symptoms but also within the context of their relationships, culture, and lived experiences. Dr. Moazeni also serves as an approved clinical supervisor in British Columbia (ACS) and across Canada (CCS), supporting therapists on their path toward professional growth and obtaining registration. If you feel that it is time to explore yourself, your relationships, or your life path from a deeper perspective, you can book a session with Dr. Moazzeni to begin this journey.