Investigation of Factors Associated with the Child Marriage in Turkey

Marriages under the age of 18 are considered early marriage cases. This situation is one of the many problems faced by women all over the world. This study aims to determine the individual and familial characteristics of children who are married at an early age. In this study, the forensic files in the Child Advocacy Center, a forensic unit for abused children are refer to, were retrospectively analyzed. After the screening, 440 cases who came to the center due to early marriage were detected. Then, the data were analyzed using descriptive statistical methods and chi-square tests In this study, the female gender, the dropout from school, the low socioeconomic level of the family and the presence of economic problems in the family, the education levels of the parents at primary and lower levels, parental marriage at an early age, the mother not having a job, and the fragmented family presence were the most prominent risk factors. In this context, preventive and rehabilitative studies could be conducted for individual and familial risk factors.