Stephen Wiw Bichiok

Abstract

Marriage in South Sudan operates simultaneously as an intimate partnership, a kinship arrangement and a community institution. This article examines indigenous marriage counselling as a psychosocial system rather than as a collection of isolated customs. Drawing primarily on the first two objectives of a doctoral study— identifying traditional marriage counselling practices and the psychological principles embedded within them— the paper analyses how elders’ guidance, family participation, cultural instruction, mediation and reconciliation function as mechanisms of behavioural learning, emotional regulation, social accountability and relational repair. The underlying study employed a mixed-methods descriptive cross-sectional design. Of 250 questionnaires distributed, 242 were returned (96.8%). The six-item traditional counselling scale produced a mean of 4.30 (SD=0.79; Cronbach’s α=.849). Traditional leaders’ role in resolving marital conflicts received the strongest endorsement (M=4.48), while all six items recorded at least 84% agreement or strong agreement. Open-ended responses identified respect, communication, trust, cooperation, elders, family support and cultural or religious values as recurrent resources for successful marriage. The analysis interprets these practices through Family Systems Theory, Social Learning Theory, Attachment Theory, Cognitive Behavioural Theory and Ecological Systems Theory. The findings suggest that indigenous counselling can be understood as a layered psychosocial regulatory system: it teaches marital norms, creates culturally legitimate spaces for dialogue, mobilises support networks, reinforces accountability, and facilitates reconciliation. However, these strengths do not justify uncritical preservation. Risks involving confidentiality, unequal authority, coercion, violence and complex psychological problems require safeguarding and professional referral. The article concludes that culturally responsive marriage counselling in South Sudan should preserve beneficial indigenous mechanisms while distinguishing community guidance from professional psychological treatment and high-risk safeguarding functions.

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