Psycho-social issues faced by child mothers in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Children who become child mothers have given birth to babies in their childhood. This is a contemporary social problem faced by many countries in the world. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to understand the psycho-social issues faced by child mothers which have become a social problem in Sri Lanka. The study focused on the psychological and social issues faced by child mothers and on actions that can be taken to minimize them. For this descriptive study, quantitative and qualitative data were collected by using direct observation, semi-structured interviews, case study and informal interviews. This study can be considered as qualitative dominant mixed research. The sample of this study was selected by the purposive sampling method. Ten child mothers from Ampara district, ten child mothers from an institution, three mothers and three fathers of child mothers and five government officers who work with child mothers were selected as the study sample. Perceptual and phenomenological approach and existential approach were used for theoretical analysis. The narrative analysis method was used for data analysis. According to the findings of the study, children who become mothers are more likely to be diagnosed with mental disorders and emotional disturbances such as having low self- esteem, suicidal thoughts, negative thoughts, nutritional problems and rejection of breastfeeding. Among social issues they face are disruption to their education, unstable family conditions, negative social image and inability to establish a plan for their future. For this reason, it is necessary to educate children on how to prevent such problems, make laws to mitigate these issues, and educate the community on such issues. There is a timely need to regularize the role of government officials dealing with child mothers.