Risk Factors Associated with the Practice of Child Marriage among Roma Girls in Serbia

Background

Relatively little research on the issue of child marriage has been conducted in European countries where the overall prevalence of child marriage is relatively low, but relatively high among marginalized ethnic sub-groups. The purpose of this study is to assess the risk factors associated with the practice of child marriage among females living in Roma settlements in Serbia and among the general population and to explore the inter-relationship between child marriage and school enrollment decisions.

Methods

The study is based on data from a nationally representative household survey in Serbia conducted in 2010 – and a separate survey of households living in Roma settlements in the same year. For each survey, we estimated a bivariate probit model of risk factors associated with being currently married and currently enrolled in school based on girls 15 to 17 years of age in the nationally representative and Roma settlements samples.

Results

The practice of child marriage among the Roma was found to be most common among girls who lived in poorer households, who had less education, and who lived in rural locations. The results of the bivariate probit analysis suggest that, among girls in the general population, decisions about child marriage school attendance are inter-dependent in that common unobserved factors were found to influence both decisions. However, among girls living in Roma settlements, there is only weak evidence of simultaneous decision making.

Conclusion

The study finds evidence of the interdependence between marriage and school enrollment decisions among the general population and, to a lesser extent, among the Roma. Further research is needed on child marriage among the Roma and other marginalized sub-groups in Europe, and should be based on panel data, combined with qualitative data, to assess the role of community-level factors and the characteristics of households where girls grow up on child marriage and education decisions.

Below:  Percent of women ages 20 to 24 who report first marrying before ages 15 and 18, 2010

Below:  Percent distribution of currently married/in union females ages 15–19 and 20–24 years living in Roma settlements by age difference with her husband/partner, 2010

Below:  Percent of women living in Roma settlements age 20–24 first married before ages 15 and 18, by educational attainment, 2010

Below:  Percent of women living in Roma settlements ages 20–24 married before ages 15 and 18, by wealth group, 2010

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/H8qcrq

By:  David R. Hotchkiss, Deepali Godha, Anastasia J. Gage, and Claudia Cappa

Department of Global Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA USA

Independent Consultant, Indore, India

UNICEF, New York, NY USA

David R. Hotchkiss, Email: ude.enalut@sikhctoh.

Corresponding author.

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8 Depressing/Uplifting Things We Learned About Women This Year

Via:   http://goo.gl/QuVg5q 

Knowledge, Attitudes & Practices of Adolescents in Upper Egypt on Gender-Based Violence, with a Focus on Early Girls' Marriage

A large proportion of the female population all over the world, particularly in developing countries, experience some form of gender-based violence (GBV) during their life. Early marriage, a form of GBV, is particularly highly prevalent in rural Upper Egypt.

The aim of the current study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of adolescents in Upper Egypt on domestic GBV, with a focus on early girls' marriage.

The study was a cross-sectional descriptive household survey targeting 400 randomly selected adolescent boys and girls aged 11-16 years from five villages of Minya Governorate in Upper Egypt.

The proportion of interviewed adolescents who could identify certain practices as forms of GBV was relatively low: the identified practices were mainly deprivation of work (9.0%), deprivation of inheritance (3.3%), arbitrary neglect and desertion (2.8%), and preventing from visiting relatives (0.5%). Abusive sexual behavior was not identified by any of the study participants as a form of domestic GBV. A total of 112 boys (56.0%) reported that they have been perpetrators in domestic GBV events at least once and 118 girls (59.0%) reported that they have been actual victims of domestic GBV. An overall 65.6% of study participants could correctly identify the legal age of marriage as 18 years, yet only 22.0% identified earlier ages of marriage as a form of domestic GBV. The vast majority of girls and boys reported that they would not agree to get married before the age of 18 years (91.0 and 87.0%, respectively).

Adolescents in Upper Egypt demonstrated a less than satisfactory knowledge about the forms of GBV. Although early girls' marriage was not universally recognized by adolescents as a form of domestic GBV, they demonstrated satisfactory knowledge about the legal age of marriage, as well as a tendency to abandon the practice. Establishing a community-based awareness program for adolescents of both sexes about GBV with a focus on early girls' marriage is highly recommended.

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By: Mahmoud Ael D1.

• 1Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Beni Suef University, Beni Suef, Egypt. 

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An Epidemiological Study of Child Marriages in a Rural Community of Gujarat, India

India has the maximum number of child marriages (CMs; < 18 years) because of the size of its population, and in 47% of all marriages the bride is a child. Children who are married at young age are exposed to multiple risks pertaining to their physical, mental, and social health.

(i) To estimate the prevalence of CM in rural population. (ii) To study the determinants and health effects of CM. (iii) To assess the awareness among the married women regarding the health implications of CM.

Community-based cross-sectional study conducted in Ardi village of Anand district.

All the married women of the village were surveyed to find out the prevalence of CM. For collection of other relevant information, only those women having a married life of less than 10years were interviewed using semicoded and pretested questionnaire. Data collected were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) 17.0 software.

The prevalence of CM was found to be 71.5%. Caste and spouse's education were revealed as important determinants for CM. CM was found to be significantly associated with mother's age at birth of first child, delayed antenatal care (ANC), spontaneous abortion, preterm delivery, low birth weight (LBW), health problems in new born baby, faulty feeding practices, lack of knowledge regarding family welfare methods, and health implications of CM.

Exceptionally high prevalence of CM in rural community and its serious health consequences warrant stricter enforcement of legislation, better educational opportunities for girls, and easy access to quality health services.

Distribution of female spouses according to significant background characteristics

Full article at: http://goo.gl/1OcBej

By: Yogita P. Pandya and Dinesh J. Bhanderi

Department of Community Medicine, Pramukhswami Medical College, Karamsad, Gujarat, India

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