Peer-reviewed article
Influence of forced child marriage and domestic violence on mental health and well-being. Conflict of traditions and rights of Roma children
Kristi Joamets, Melita Sogomonjan ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This article examines how forced child marriage and domestic violence affect the mental health and well-being of Roma children in Europe. It reviews international conventions, domestic laws, and the work of administrative bodies and NGOs designed to protect children and enforce their rights. The article questions whether existing legal tools are effective at protecting Roma children from domestic violence within forced marriage and safeguarding their mental health.
Key points
- Domestic violence in forced child marriage has an impact on adolescent mental health and well-being
- Mental health problems from forced child marriage receive less attention than other negative consequences
- Multiple international conventions, domestic laws, and protective institutions exist but appear inefficient in protecting children in communities practicing rights-violating traditions
- The study focuses on the gap between available legal tools and their effectiveness in European practice
Limitations
This is a legal and policy analysis mapping existing tools rather than an empirical study measuring outcomes or testing interventions. It cannot provide quantitative evidence about the prevalence of forced child marriage among Roma children or the effectiveness of specific interventions in reducing it.
Abstract
Summary Domestic violence in forced child marriage can have impact on mental health and well-being of an adolescent. However, mental health problems are discussed less often than other negative consequences forced child marriage can cause. Although there are several international conventions, appropriate domestic law and active administrative bodies and NGOs embodying the strategies for protecting children, women and human rights, all these tools seem to be inefficient to protect children in a community practicing traditions which violate children’s rights. Article maps the available legal tools and analyses their application in European practice discussing whether these tools are effective enough to protect Roma children from domestic violence in forced child marriage and ensure their mental well-being.