As evidenced by the Ethnographical Atlas, out of 1,231 investigated societies, only 186 were monogamous, which makes the concept of polygamy even more relevant to the research problem at hand. The choice of monogamy over polygamy is also dictated by some social and historical factors. Polygamy is contrary to monogamy, which is defined as the bond of only two partners. This research will focus on the type of polygamous family structure that involves one husband and multiple wives since it is the type that is the most prevalent in Muslim communities. According to the definition given by Goodwin (1999), polygamy is a relationship between people that implies more than one spouse and can come in a variety of forms (p. The summary of the relevant research topics includes the following terms: polygamy, monogamy, self-esteem, and family cohesion. 323), the effect of polygamous family relationships on children’s self-esteem can become a fruitful area for research. Because self-esteem has proven to be influenced by parental support and competence relevant to their parents (Killeen, 1993, p. Furthermore, the majority of research was conducted to investigate the effect of polygamy on wives or husbands rather than children. Therefore, investigating the problem of how polygamous relationships within families affect the psychological integrity of children is highly important. Recent studies have also found that polygamous family members are much more prone to psychological distress and issues with self-esteem.
According to the study conducted by Ware (1979), acrimony can appear among different wives as well as their children (p. Polygamy can become one of the primary reasons for wives getting jealous and competitive and being forced to live within an environment where the emotional resources are distributed unevenly between the members of the family. Wives in a polygamous family are forced to cooperate in completing chores in the household at the same time while being subjected to the authority of their husband and keeping up with constant competition to win more attention, love, and financial support (Al-Krenawi, 2012, p. The choice of polygamy as a suitable type of family organization is grounded on a variety of practical considerations, especially in Muslim communities.
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