Comparing adolescent boys’ and girls’ perspectives on social norms surrounding child marriage in Nepal Open Access
Morrow, Grace (Spring 2020)
Abstract
Background: Child, early, forced marriage (CEFM) is a human-rights violation that also carries numerous health risks. More research is needed on social norms about CEFM among adolescent boys to identify ways of engaging them in normative change. This study seeks to describe adolescent boys' perceptions of empirical and normative expectations around CEFM and to identify commonalities and differences in adolescent boys’ and girls’ perceptions of empirical and normative expectations around CEFM in Nepal.
Methods: This study is a mixed methods secondary analysis of the CARE Tipping Point Initiative. The baseline survey had 1,134 adolescent girls and 1,154 adolescent boys participate. The baseline survey included a social norms assessment with a Likert scale consisting of 16 items, 11 of which were relevant to this analysis. Descriptive analyses of the Likert scales were calculated. Qualitative data consisted of 30 in-depth interviews and 16 focus group discussions with adolescent boys and girls. We used a modified Grounded Theory approach for their analysis. Data represented in both the social norms scales and the qualitative data were used to guide the development of the themes for thick descriptions. Four thick descriptions were written including: gender roles and responsibilities, employment, mobility, and marriage as the themes. Analytic comparisons at the intersection of key themes examined interconnectedness and synergies, and thick descriptions were generated to interrogate these intersections. Structured comparisons by gender were described in a matrix detailing their impact on each key aspect of social norms, including normative and empirical expectations, and sanctions.
Results: Gender roles and responsibilities are the foundation on which social norms around mobility, marriage, and employment interact, though they are connected by subthemes (household chores, interaction between unmarried adolescent boys and girls, education and financial stability, maintaining honor and reputation, and parents as decision-makers). Boys and girls agree most saliently on the division of labor between the sexes, women’s employment, and the role of parents as decision-makers. Areas of difference include repercussions for interactions with the opposite sex, girls’ limited mobility, attributes of the ideal woman and the importance of maintaining family honor.
Discussion: Many of the findings are supported by previous research, though there are some nuances this analysis highlights. Recommendations for future programs include use of bystander training for boys to prevent eve teasing and programming that allows boys to better understand girls’ experiences and perspectives. Further areas of research include factors that motivate boys to sexually harass girls and defining what masculinity and femininity mean for adolescents in Nepal.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction..........................................................7
Chapter 2 Literature Review...................................................9
Chapter 3 Manuscript............................................................14
Abstract.............................................................................14
Introduction.......................................................................15
Methods.............................................................................18
Results...............................................................................21
Discussion..........................................................................32
Chapter 4 Discussion and Recomendations..............................37
References............................................................................43
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