PREP®

The Prevention and

Relationship

Enhancement Program

Copyright © PREP Educational Products, Inc. 2005

All rights reserved.

303-759-9931

Why Marriage Education?

People want to be married to somebody for life, and they want their marriage to go

well. In fact, most people will get married in our country at some point. And on

the day they marry, they’re thinking about their dreams and their positive future.

• Some couples focus only on their problems, which leaves them feeling overly pessimistic about their relationship.

• On the other hand, some couples try to deny their problems and focus only on “the good things.”

• Most of us know on some level that problems don’t tend to go away on their own. In fact, the opposite happens—they get worse!

• There are very few (if any) deliriously happy couples who’ve never seriously struggled with anything in their lives.

• In marriage over time there are highs, there are lows, there are struggles and there are good times.

Over the past 30 years, marital researchers have discovered that marital success is not a matter of luck nor is marital failure a mystery.  Hard work , commitment and learning to use relationships skills that result in fulfilling marriages is the focus of the Marriage Education movement.

What is PREP?

PREP is education, not therapy. Most of us learned to read with the help of a teacher. We took tennis lessons, piano lessons or at least watched a t.v. show on how to remodel the bathroom before digging in.

But when it comes to loving relationships, we just assume we’ll know how to do it.

The fact is that most of us didn’t learn relationship skills in a direct manner from qualified sources. Most of us simply picked up bits of information from people who had good intentions, but lacked expertise. Worse, some passed on advice that was downright wrong.

When it comes to loving the most important people in our lives, no one can ever learn too much. Research shows that while therapy can be extremely helpful in certain situations, much of what goes wrong in loving relationships has much to do with never having learned the skills and principles associated with successful relationships.

That's why we developed an educational program to teach couples the skills and principles they need to maintain a healthy and lasting relationship.

Why PREP?

The Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) is a research-based approach to teaching couples (premarital or marital) how to:

• Communicate effectively
• Work as a team to solve problems
• Manage conflicts without damaging closeness
• Preserve and enhance commitment and friendship.

The PREP Approach is based on over 25 years of research in the field of marital health and success, with much of the specific research conducted at the University of Denver and funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.

PREP is empirically informed, meaning that, to the extent possible, the strategies of PREP are based on the growing body of research on marital and family health.

PREP is also empirically tested. PREP has been studied intensively, including long-term outcome studies by six different research teams in four different countries.

Further, the program is regularly refined based on the latest research.

The core content of Prep includes two key content areas with the goal of lowering risks and raising protection:

Lowering Risks:

• Interaction Danger Signs
• Communication Theory
• Key Issues and Conflict Management
• Problem Solving
• Expectation Clarification
• Forgiveness-making it happen

Raising Protection:

• Commitment, Priorities, and Sacrifice
• Preserving Friendship
• Keeping Fun Alive
• Sensuality and Sexuality
• Spiritual and Religious Intimacy
• Core Belief Exploration

The premise is that it's not how much you love each other that makes a relationship or marriage work; it's how you resolve differences and preserve fun and sensuality that keeps a relationship strong. This course uses teaching, videos, role-plays, group discussions and private coaching to educate couples in an atmosphere of informality and comfort. 

Media Attention

Because of PREP's strong empirical base, and the ability of our team to effectively communicate fascinating research findings to the public, the media has taken great interest in our work. For example, the underlying research, or the program itself has been featured on 20/20, 48 Hours, Oprah, CNN, Good Morning America, The Today Show, The Jim Bohannon Show, and others.

Print media has included coverage in such publications as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Health Magazine, Redbook, Psychology Today, The San Francisco Chronicle, Men's Health, Parade Magazine, and others. Over the last few years, PREP or one of the founders has been quoted in over 300 media articles. This public relations attention provides a means of building credibility with couples and often fosters interest in participation in the program.

The course is presented in three formats:

• One Day Workshop (8 hrs)
• 4-Two hour sessions (8 hrs.)
• Weekend Retreat (Friday evening-Saturday Afternoon-8 hrs.)

Who is PREP for?

PREP is for couples who want to make their marriage be the best it can be. It doesn't matter whether you have a newfound love, you're gritting your teeth as your teen gets his license, or your youngest has left you with an empty nest. PREP offers you the chance to discover how to enjoy your marriage no matter where you are today or what tomorrow may bring.

PREP/Christian PREP

PREP is the program designed to be utilized with all populations.  It focuses on the content discussed in the book, Fighting for Your Marriage.

Christian PREP is a program reflecting a clear commitment to traditional Christianity and Christian truth. The model of integration employed here gives first place to the revelation of scripture and second place to sound research.

If revelation and research are in conflict, revelation wins out. The fact is, however, that revelation and sound research are consistently and amazingly consistent in those areas where they speak to the same phenomena. This has been one of the most exciting aspects of bringing this project together.

Tuition Rate:  $39.00 per hour per couple (includes program & materials).

Early Bird Registration Rates:  $29.00 per hour per couple (includes program & materials).

Alternative Payment:  Please contact the office at 419-660-0533 if you would like to attend but are in need of alternative funding.

Click here to register and check schedule.

9 Reasons to Take PREP

1) Adults and children are at increased risk for mental and physical problems due to marital distress and divorce.

2) Mis-managed conflict and negative interaction in marriage predict both marital distress and negative effects for children.

3) Marital problems are associated with decreased work productivity, especially for men.

4) Married men and women in all age groups are less likely to be limited in activity (a general healthy index) due to illness than single, separated, divorced or widowed individuals.

5) Children living with a single parent or adult report a higher prevalence of activity limitation and higher rates of disability. They are also more likely to be in fair or poor health and more likely to have been hospitalized.

6) Younger people in the U.S. who are marrying for the first time face roughly a 40-50% chance of divorcing in their lifetime under current trends.

7) The conflict that precedes and surrounds divorce causes great mental, physical, and economic damage to parents and children alike- and these effects are actually stronger than the effects of divorce, per se.

8) Due to a lack of confidence in marriage, more couples are choosing premarital cohabitation than ever before, which research shows is more associated, not less, with risk for marital problems and divorce.

9) The “triple threat” of marital conflict, divorce, and out-of-wedlock births has led to a generation of U.S. children at great risk for poverty, healthy problems, alienation, and antisocial behavior.