Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 5, 2025

Assessing the Coherence of Parents' Short Narratives Regarding their Child Using the Five-Minute Speech Sample Procedure
Published on: September 19, 2019
Fostering Protective Assets Among Syrian Refugee Girls Who Experience Child Marriage: Findings from a Formative
Lillian Whiting-Collins1, Mona Tawk2, Celia Karp3
1Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Department of Population, Family, and Reproductive Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, USA. lcolli28@alumni.jh.edu.
Abstract:
The International Rescue Committee's Life Skills Tailored Package for Early Marriage focuses on engaged, married, and divorced Syrian refugee girls aged 13-18 living in Lebanon. This paper details findings from a qualitative program evaluation. In-depth interviews (IDIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs) explored participants' viewpoints about program components. IDIs engaged program staff and adolescent girls. FGDs included adolescent girls, husbands/fathers, and mothers/mothers-in-law. Data were audio-recorded, transcribed, and assessed using inductive content analysis. Three themes emerged: (1) engaging influencers with discretion facilitated girls' participation, (2) reaching out to vulnerable girls required foresight and flexibility, and (3) participation fostered development of personal resources and adaptive capacities among adolescent girls, who described improvements in self-confidence for decision-making/time management, reproductive health knowledge, emotional regulation/understanding of healthy relationships, and self-protection. Efforts to improve psychosocial and reproductive health of refugee adolescent girls experiencing child marriage should integrate lessons learned through this program.
Related Concept Videos
Socioemotional Experience and Gender Development
Ethnic Identity within a Larger Culture
Community Based Intervention
Foundations of Community Mental Health Programs
Central to the success of community-based interventions is the...
Influence of Parents and Peers on Identity
Parental Influence on Identity Development
Parents serve as primary guides and managers in an adolescent's life, offering support instrumental in decision-making and personal growth....
Relationship Formation
Relationship with Other Adult Family Members and Siblings

