Evaluation of the Sociodemographic and Psychiatric Features of the Adolescents who were Referred to a Child Psychiatry Clinic for the Forensic Evaluation for Early Marriage

Journal Title: Turkish Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health - Year 2019, Vol 26, Issue 3

Abstract

Objectives: Although there is a legal age limit for marriage in most countries, early marriage, which is defined as marriages under the age of 18 years, still persists. Early marriages, in which major gender inequality is observed, particularly affect the physical and mental well-being of girls in a negative way. The aim of this study was to examine sociodemographic factors and psychiatric diagnoses that might be associated with early marriages. Materials and Methods: Our study included forty-two adolescents referred by the courts for forensic evaluation for early marriage. The case files, social examination reports and psychometric evaluation results were examined retrospectively. Psychiatric diagnoses were established by clinical interview based on DSM-5. Results: All of the cases were adolescent girls, 20% were illiterate, 40% were graduated from primary school. Of the sample, 56.8% lived in rural areas. Before the time of their forensic evaluation, 81% carried out informal marriage with religious marriage. Of girls, 59.5% were pregnant, 9.5% had a child. The rate of having any psychiatric diagnosis was 9.5% according to DSM 5. It was observed that those who were pregnant at earlier ages were married with religious marriage at a younger age, and the age gap between them and their spouses was higher, compared to those who never became cpregnant (p<0.05). Conclusion: Early marriages are associated with low levels of education and socioeconomic difficulties. Keeping the girls in the school setting for longer is one of the most substantial prevention to reduce early marriagies. There is a need to establish special networks for married girls to support the development of their education, knowledge and skills.

Authors and Affiliations

Onur Tuğçe Poyraz Fındıki, Burcu Gökalp Özcan, Ayşe Rodopman Arman, Funda Gümüştaş

Keywords

Related Articles

Factors Associated with Suicide Attempt in Adolescents who Applied for Drug use

Objectives: Suicide attempts in children and adolescents are health problems all over the world. Substance use disorder is a frequent psychiatric comorbidity related to suicide attempts. Our aim in this study is to deter...

Adolescent Prosociality Scale: Validity and Reliability Study

Objectives: The validity and reliability study of the Adolescent Prosociality Scale was aimed to gain a new measurement tool to determine the prosocial tendencies of adolescents in the relevant field. Materials and Meth...

Irritability and Assessment of İrritability in Children

Irritability, which is a symptom detected in both normal developmental processes and various psychiatric disorders, has recently been of interest to clinicians working in the field of children and adolescents psychiatry....

Epileptic Seizure Following A Switch From Short-acting Methylphenidate to Long-acting Methylphenidate Treatment: A Case Report

Methylphenidate is the most commonly prescribed psychostimulant medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Its efficacy and tolerability in children and adults have been described in numerous studies...

Download PDF file
  • EP ID EP675890
  • DOI 10.4274/tjcamh.galenos.2019.2019.06.011
  • Views 252
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

Onur Tuğçe Poyraz Fındıki, Burcu Gökalp Özcan, Ayşe Rodopman Arman, Funda Gümüştaş (2019). Evaluation of the Sociodemographic and Psychiatric Features of the Adolescents who were Referred to a Child Psychiatry Clinic for the Forensic Evaluation for Early Marriage. Turkish Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 26(3), -. https://europub.co.uk/articles/-A-675890