Perceptions of men aged 24-60 from three different socioeconomic level on child marriage, Ankara

Abstract

Abstract Background It is estimated that one in every five women has married before 18 year of age in Turkey. In majority of studies on child marriages the data have been collected from women. Number of studies conducted with men are limited and mostly qualitative. This study aims to determine some attitudes and perceptions of 24-60 age group men on child marriages in three neighborhoods with different socioeconomic status in Ankara. Methods A descriptive epidemiological study was conducted in three neighborhoods with low, middle and high socioeconomic status. The data was collected through a self-administrated questionnaire from 500 men aged 24-60 in each neighborhood through household visits. Ethics Commission permission was granted. Results The median age of first marriage increased both among men and their wives as the socioeconomic status improved (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). From low socioeconomic status to high (respectively, 3.2%, 1.3%, 0.2%), men agreed women could marry before the age of 18 (p = 0.001). Men with low (69.2%) and medium (74.2%) socioeconomic status believed “marriage” was the most important experience in women's lives. Men with low socioeconomic status found marriage of their daughters and sons under 18 more acceptable compared to the men with high socioeconomic status (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, respectively). 14.0% of men whose wife was below 18 at the time of marrige, agreed women could marry before the age of 18, compared to 0.8% whose wife was 18 year old or older at the time of marriage (p < 0.001). Conclusions This is the first quantitative study in Turkey conducted to understand the perceptions and attitudes of men on child marriages. These findings confirm that socioeconomic status is an important determinant of child marriages, there are disparities in gender perspective among different socioeconomic levels and child marriage is carried over between generations. Key messages Traditional gender roles for women and men in the family have a continuing trend in all socioeconomic levels, but more significant in the low and middle socioeconomic level neighborhoods. Specific male groups including fathers need to be targeted in interventions to prevent child marriages. Specific male groups need to be targeted in interventions to prevent child marriages.