Peer-reviewed article
Measuring Social Norms Related to Child Marriage Among Adult Decision-Makers of Young Girls in Phalombe and Thyolo, Malawi
Mara C. Steinhaus, Laura Hinson, A. Theodore Rizzo, Amy Gregowski ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study measured social norms related to child marriage among adult decision-makers for girls aged 10–17 in two districts of Southern Malawi. Researchers surveyed 1,492 adults using questions about empirical expectations (what people think happens), normative expectations (what people think should happen), and fear of sanctions. The findings suggest that while most adults believed girls marry young, they did not strongly believe this was the expected norm or fear social punishment for non-compliance, indicating child marriage may not be driven primarily by social norms in these communities.
Key points
- 89.3% of respondents believed most girls marry before age 18, but only 53.2% thought this was what the community expected
- Only 36.4% of respondents feared social sanctions related to child marriage
- Child marriage may be perpetuated by other norms related to adolescent sexuality and contraceptive access rather than direct normative expectations
- The study used an established social norm diagnostic process with measures of empirical expectations, normative expectations, and sanctions
- Despite Southern Malawi having the lowest median age of first marriage nationally, child marriage appears not to be a strong social norm in the intervention communities
Limitations
This is a baseline measurement study without an intervention or comparison group, so it cannot demonstrate causation or test solutions. The findings reflect self-reported beliefs among adult decision-makers only and do not measure the actual behaviour or attitudes of the girls themselves.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Given the importance of developing appropriate measures for assessing social norm change, this article documents the process, results, and lessons learned from a baseline survey measuring social norms related to child marriage in Phalombe and Thyolo districts in Southern Malawi. METHODS: A quantitative questionnaire was administered to a representative sample of all adults (age ≥18 years) who self-identified as a decision-maker for at least one girl between the ages of 10 and 17 years, for a total sample size of 1,492 respondents. Measures of empirical expectations, normative expectations, and sanctions related to child marriage were modeled after previously developed measures and social norm theory. RESULTS: Using an established social norm diagnostic process, this study found that, despite Southern Malawi having the lowest median age of first marriage in the country, child marriage may not be a strong social norm in the intervention communities. Specifically, although 89.3% of respondents expressed the empirical expectation that "Most girls in this community marry before the age of 18," agreement with the normative expectation that "Most people in this community expect girls to marry before the age of 18" was just 53.2% overall and fear of sanctions was just 36.4%. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, the presence of prudential reasons for child marriage and the weak evidence of normative expectations and sanctions indicate that child marriage may not be a social norm in these communities although it may be indirectly perpetuated by other norms related to adolescent sexuality and access to contraception.