Cohabitation as an alternative form of marriage and family relations in contemporary Russian society

The article analyzes the cohabitation as a form of marriage and family relations. At the present time there are changes in family relations, the transformation of the marriage and family institution, the transition from "traditional" type to the "modern", which is also accompanied by the growth of alternative forms of family relations, including cohabitation. The authors study marriage and family structure of the Astrakhan region and the percentage of cohabitation cases in it. The authors present the results of the survey, which examines public attitudes to cohabitation, the main reasons why people engage in unregistered marriages, what factors can change the attitudes and, consequently, increasing number of unregistered marriages. The authors identify particular forms of cohabitation as marriage and family relations and the factors contributing to their growth.