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.

摘要

童婚与妇女和女孩的不良健康和社会后果有关。在肯尼亚的牧民中，童婚被认为高于全国平均水平。本文探讨了生活在受冲突影响的肯尼亚东北部社区的社会规范和背景因素如何维持童婚。对瓦吉尔县和曼德拉县的游牧和半游牧育龄妇女和男子进行了深入访谈。参与者有目的地在一系列年龄组和社区类型中进行抽样。访谈按主题进行分析，并以社会规范方法为指导。我们发现年轻夫妇见面方式的变化以及对童婚的负面看法的证据，因为童婚对女孩的生殖健康和性别不平等有影响。尽管如此，童婚在游牧和半游牧妇女中很常见。两个首要的主题解释了童婚的做法：1）性别规范，2）对大家庭的渴望。我们的研究结果补充了全球文献，同时贡献了牧民群体的观点。贫困、传统的牧民生活方式和女孩有限的正规教育机会等背景因素支持了鼓励和维持童婚的大家庭规范和性别规范。