The interdisciplinary silences on sexual violence and the omission of children and youth from social science research speak volumes of the power of the child as a flexible, cultural signifier. In this article, I argue that dominant frameworks of children and childhood make child sexual assault a discursive impossibility for most young people. The epistemic violence of silencing matters, and it is these erasures that are fundamental to understanding violence and power. I argue it is paramount for feminist researchers to call attention to the undermining qualities of Institutional Review Boards that act as gatekeepers of representation and voice.
Introduction and backgroundEarly marriage and maternity represent a violation of human rights and a barrier to achieving gender equality in education. Studies conducted across various regions and countries, including Mozambique, have highlighted the negative consequences of early marriage and maternity, particularly on adolescent girls' physical, educational and mental health. Adolescent girls who marry before the age of 18 are more prone to a broad spectrum of mood, anxiety, and other psychiatric disorders. In the districts of Maganja da Costa and Morrumbala in Zambézia Province, Mozambique, high rates of early marriage persist despite government policies and interventions.Purpose statementThis study aims to understand early marriage's socio-cultural, economic, and psychological drivers and impacts on adolescent girls' lives, focusing on education, mental health, and well-being.Design and methodsThis paper used a qualitative research design. We employed a life-story approach and used purposeful sampling to identify participants. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 participants and the data were analysed using Tesch's thematic analysis approach.ResultsElements contributing to early marriage and pregnancy are intricately linked with socio-cultural elements. These include the induction into specific societal roles, the affirmation of childbearing, the perceived importance of dowry, the impact of rite-of-passage ceremonies, and the cultural significance associated with a girl's initial menstruation. School dropout often originates from geographical and transportation challenges, nudging adolescent girls towards early marriage. In some instances, termination of pregnancy was viewed as a solution, while engaging in sexual activities was seen as a means to inject purpose into their lives or as a response to poverty. Positive changes and emotions were evident, yet regrettably, the ramifications of early pregnancy and marriage were primarily detrimental. These influenced the adolescent girls' interpersonal connections, educational and career opportunities, emotional well-being, and access to support networks.ConclusionsThe modern perspective, which advocates for equal educational rights for boys and girls and posits that marriage should occur after the age of 18, contradicts the socio-cultural perspective of adulthood.ContributionThis study adds to the ongoing efforts to prevent and combat early marriage and maternity in Africa.
Background: Early marriage occurs at the age of less than 19 years. The incidence of early marriage is caused by cultural factors of early marriage, married by accident, education, and low economic conditions all affect early marriage. The mental health impact of early marriage can lead to anxiety, stress, and depression. Aims: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between early marriage and mental health in adolescent girls. Methods: This study uses quantitative research methods using a cross-sectional research design. The total population is 49 people, and the sampling method used is total sampling. The study was conducted for 1 month. The research instrument used the DASS21 questionnaire and data collection sheets. The data analysis of this research was univariate and bivariate analysis. Results: The results showed that the frequency of adolescents experiencing severe stress was 40.8%, very severe anxiety reached 42.9%, and very severe depression reached 53.1%. There is a relationship between early marriage and severe stress with a p-value of 0.001, there is a relationship between early marriage and very severe anxiety with a p-value of 0.001, and there is a relationship between early marriage and very severe depression with a p-value of 0.004. Conclusion: It can be concluded that early marriage has a relationship with mental health in adolescent girls in the Ngemplak Region and future research should involve husbands in in-depth qualitative research exploring in depth the causes of the mental health of young women who took early marriages.
Child or early marriage, primarily due to cultural factors, continues as a tradition and seems to be a growing phenomenon in Jordan. This research explores the lived experience of early marriage from the perspective of adolescent girls and young women. A qualitative research design and in-depth face-to-face interviews in the Arabic language were conducted with 36 female subjects, married before the age of 18 and all newlyweds, married for less than 3 years. Six major themes emerged from the interviews to describe the experience of the participants: “Feeling remorse about getting married early”; “Loss of authority and feeling powerless”; “Reasons behind early marriage”; “Feeling pressure to have the first baby”; “Early marriage and pregnancy health consequences”; and “The positive aspects of an early marriage.” The lived experience revealed in this study confirm the overall negative effect of girls entering marriage at a young age, Early marriage is a violation of human rights, and robs girls of their childhood, education, work, and other life choices, in addition to the reported adverse psychological and physical effects.
Background: Secondary education and delayed marriage provide long-term socio-economic and health benefits to adolescent girls. We tested whether a multi-level, structural and norms-based intervention could reduce secondary school drop-out and child marriage among rural, marginalised adolescent girls in southern India. Methods: 80 of 121 village clusters in Vijayapura and Bagalkote districts, Karnataka State, were randomly selected (40 intervention; 40 control). Scheduled-caste/scheduled-tribe girls aged 12-13 years in the final year of primary school were enrolled into the study. The primary trial outcomes were the proportion of girls who (i) completed secondary school and (ii) were married, by trial end-line (15-16 years). <br>Findings: 92.6% (2257/2457) of girls at baseline and 72.8% (1788/2457) at end-line were interviewed. At end-line, a quarter had not completed secondary school (control=24.9%/intervention=25.4%), and 10% were married (control=9.6%/intervention=10.1%). These were lower than expected, with no difference between arms. There was no difference in other schooling or sexual and reproductive outcomes by trial arm. Stratified by district, there were small but significant increases in secondary school completion (control=73%; intervention=77%) among girls in Vijayapura. <br>Interpretation: Low school drop-out and marriage rates reflect large secular changes and government programming during our trial. This makes it difficult to assess the value of the intervention overall or the value of this approach in settings where school dropout and child marriage are persistently high. Further research is needed to explore interventions for the substantial minority of girls who remain at risk of marriage and school drop-out in this setting. <br>Funding Statement: Project Samata was funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) as part of STRIVE, a 6-year programme of research and action devoted to tackling the structural drivers of HIV and ViiV Healthcare. <br>Declaration of Interests: The authors confirm no conflicting interests. <br>Ethics Approval Statement: This work complies with the Principles of the Ethical Practice of Public Health code. The study was approved by ethics committees at St John’s Medical College, Bangalore (Ref 111/2013), LSHTM (Ref 7083), and the University of Manitoba (Ref H2014:414).
Ravi Prakash, Tara S. Beattie, Prakash Javalkar et al.
Abstract Following the terrorist attack of October 7, 2023, Israeli social media platforms were inundated with uncensored, violent “snuff” videos. Adolescent girls, who research consistently shows to be more emotionally and socially vulnerable to violent online content, particularly within peer driven digital environments, found themselves exposed to severe and distressing material. This study adopts a gender sensitive lens, recognizing that girls’ heightened empathy, emotional attunement, and social connectedness may shape both their exposure to and coping with extreme online violence in distinct ways. This study aimed to explore their emotional experiences, coping strategies, and perceptions of adult support following exposure to these traumatic online materials. A qualitative phenomenological approach was employed. Fifteen Israeli girls, aged 15–18, who had viewed war-related snuff videos on social networks, were interviewed in-depth. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and thematically analyzed. Results: The analysis revealed four central themes: (1) Ubiquitous exposure, wherein participants felt unable to avoid violent content; (2) Intense emotional and physiological responses, including fear, horror, shivering, and vomiting, suggesting traumatic stress reactions; (3) Coping strategies and resilience, as some participants ceased viewing voluntarily or with external intervention, sought peer support, and gradually regained a sense of control; and (4) The perceived role of significant adults, with participants noting that parents and educators were sometimes emotionally unavailable due to their own distress. The lack of open dialogue and the reliance on restrictive measures rather than meaningful guidance led to frustration and unmet emotional needs. The findings highlight the importance of preventative conversations, supportive adult involvement, and the development of non-intrusive coping strategies to mitigate the harmful effects of online violent content on vulnerable youth populations.
The right of choice in marriage is universal and it is enshrined in international human rights instruments. Yet, many girls under 18 years enter into marriage without a chance to exercise that right. This has proved problematic as the situation often results in negative outcomes including school drop-out, pregnancy risks, diseases and sexually transmitted infections, unhappiness, and even death. This study therefore examined the factors influencing child marriage among girls in Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Area of Nasarawa State. It specifically investigated the cultural and sociodemographic factors influencing child marriage among girls in the study area. The ethno-cultural theory of pedogamy guided the study. The mixed method research design was employed with structured questionnaire and key informant interviews utilized in the collection of data. Data was retrieved from 183 respondents, and it was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative approaches. The study hypothesis was tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation. Results from the study showed that the practice of arranged marriage and beliefs that marriage brings honour to a girl and her family contributes to child marriage. Also, ignorance of fundamental human rights among girls and peer influence, as well as financial difficulties in families, illiteracy among parents and weak enforcement of legal sanctions against child marriage contributes to the practice of child marriage. The study recommends, among others, promotion of education and awareness programme that challenge cultural beliefs that perpetuate child marriage, and implementation of interventions that address poverty in Nasarawa Eggon LGA.
Childhood is a critical developmental period characterized by awareness and understanding of societal norms and expectations. As Black women, we share childhood experiences that formed the basis of our early understanding of what it truly means to be Black in America. Creating a sense of community through our shared experiences, the authors recounted experiences like this one: In a pediatric waiting room years ago, a White child played with a velvet curtain, and was met with adoring gazes and friendly smiles. Minutes later, a Black child playing with the same velvet curtain was immediately approached by a security guard and asked to stop the behavior. Their Black mother verbally exploded at the security guard in defense of her child, condemning racialized double standards to the guard's back as he walked away. The little Black girl who watched her mother publicly lose composure for the first time began learning a lesson that would stay with her for the rest of her life – she was Black, and that had rules. Life would not be fair, but she must always behave in public, and because no one would care about her pain, there was no benefit in expressing it. This girl would fall victim to the “Strong Black Woman” schema, and one day educate others about its harms.
Brittany S. Johnson, Shaquanna Brown, Tracey M. Guthrie
ABSTRACT Early marriages occur in Indonesia and this still contributes to maternal and childmortality. Therefore, research is needed to find out the reasons why the incidenceof early marriage can occur. This research was conducted in four sub-districts inSurabaya, East Java, Indonesia, by taking respondents based on the technique ofsnowball sampling. After the interview, several factors had apparently contributedto this early marriage, among others, culture, economic level, level of education,and level of knowledge on marriage. This of course requires a program to increasethe age of first marriage by a woman called maturing marriage age. It is hoped thatthe contributing factors to early marriage will not be repeated in the future whenthe perpetrators of the early marriage are given an explanation of the importanceof delaying the age of marriage to adulthood.
Background Parental divorce can disrupt adolescents’ identity, security, and belonging. In Muslim-majority Indonesia, divorce is also interpreted through cultural expectations of family unity, filial respect, family reputation, and religious meaning. These meanings may intensify stigma, but they may also provide adolescents with moral language for patience, hope, and self-restraint. Objective This study explored how Indonesian Muslim adolescent girls make sense of psychological well-being after parental divorce, with attention to Islamic cultural meanings, family relationships, stigma, and coping. Methods This qualitative original research used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted with 15 Muslim adolescent girls aged 14–15 years who had experienced parental divorce for at least one year. Participants were recruited purposively from a junior high school in Bekasi City, Indonesia. Interviews were conducted in Bahasa Indonesia, audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, translated for reporting, and analyzed through idiographic case-by-case interpretation, cross-case theme development, reflexive journaling, and researcher consensus. Results Four superordinate themes were identified: negotiating loss and self-acceptance after family rupture; relational ecosystems as both protection and vulnerability; moving from reactive survival toward purposeful autonomy; and Islamic cultural context and moral meaning-making. Participants described divorce as more than a family event. It became a public and moral experience shaped by the label of “broken home,” expectations to respect parents, fear of gossip, and the wish to remain a good Muslim daughter. Conclusion In this single-school qualitative study, psychological well-being after parental divorce among Indonesian Muslim adolescent girls was shaped by emotional, relational, cultural, and religious processes. These findings suggest that school and community support should address stigma and emotional distress while engaging respectfully with Islamic family values in context-specific ways.
Slametiningsih, Achir Yani S. Hamid, Mustikasari Mustikasari et al.
