eprintid: 10124817
rev_number: 18
eprint_status: archive
userid: 608
dir: disk0/10/12/48/17
datestamp: 2021-03-29 13:41:31
lastmod: 2021-12-13 23:53:59
status_changed: 2021-03-29 13:41:31
type: article
metadata_visibility: show
creators_name: Lowe, H
creators_name: Kenny, L
creators_name: Hassan, R
creators_name: Bacchus, LJ
creators_name: Njoroge, P
creators_name: Dagadu, NA
creators_name: Hossain, M
creators_name: Cislaghi, B
title: 'If she gets married when she is young, she will give birth to many kids': a qualitative study of child marriage practices amongst nomadic pastoralist communities in Kenya
ispublished: inpress
divisions: UCL
divisions: B02
divisions: D01
keywords: Child marriage, early childbearing, gender norms, reproductive health
note: Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
abstract: Child marriage is associated with adverse health and social outcomes for women and girls. Among pastoralists in Kenya, child marriage is believed to be higher compared to the national average. This paper explores how social norms and contextual factors sustain child marriage in communities living in conflict-affected North Eastern Kenya. In-depth interviews were carried out with nomadic and semi-nomadic women and men of reproductive age in Wajir and Mandera counties. Participants were purposively sampled across a range of age groups and community types. Interviews were analysed thematically and guided by a social norms approach. We found changes in the way young couples meet and evidence for negative perceptions of child marriage due to its impact on the girls’ reproductive health and gender inequality. Despite this, child marriage was common amongst nomadic and semi-nomadic women. Two overarching themes explained child marriage practices: 1) gender norms, and 2) desire for large family size. Our findings complement the global literature, while contributing perspectives of pastoralist groups. Contextual factors of poverty, traditional pastoral lifestyles and limited formal education opportunities for girls, supported large family norms and gender norms that encouraged and sustained child marriage.
date: 2021-03-23
official_url: https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2021.1893821
oa_status: green
full_text_type: pub
language: eng
primo: open
primo_central: open_green
verified: verified_manual
elements_id: 1855244
doi: 10.1080/13691058.2021.1893821
lyricists_name: Lowe, Hattie
lyricists_id: HMLOW66
actors_name: Lowe, Hattie
actors_id: HMLOW66
actors_role: owner
full_text_status: public
publication: Culture, Health & Sexuality
event_location: England
citation:        Lowe, H;    Kenny, L;    Hassan, R;    Bacchus, LJ;    Njoroge, P;    Dagadu, NA;    Hossain, M;           Lowe, H;  Kenny, L;  Hassan, R;  Bacchus, LJ;  Njoroge, P;  Dagadu, NA;  Hossain, M;  Cislaghi, B;   - view fewer <#>    (2021)    'If she gets married when she is young, she will give birth to many kids': a qualitative study of child marriage practices amongst nomadic pastoralist communities in Kenya.                   Culture, Health & Sexuality        10.1080/13691058.2021.1893821 <https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2021.1893821>.    (In press).    Green open access   
 
document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10124817/1/If%20she%20gets%20married%20when%20she%20is%20young%20she%20will%20give%20birth%20to%20many%20kids%20a%20qualitative%20study%20of%20child%20marriage%20practices%20amongst%20nomadic%20pastoralist.pdf