why boys marry early?: an enquiry into factors associated

Why boys marry early?: An enquiry into factors associated with early marriage of

young men in rural Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract:

Introduction: While documenting the early marriage among females, literature across the

globe has forgotten the issue of early male marriage. Despite its continued prevalence, it

received little attention in the past. This study tries to explore various factors associated with

male child marriage in rural India.

Data and Methods: Primary survey was conducted in twelve villages of Uttar Pradesh and

348 males who were married below 21 years of age and their fathers were interviewed. Logistic

regression and decomposition analysis were used.

Results: Nearly 27 percent of males in our sample were got married below 18 years of age. In

nearly one-fifth of the cases, parents arranged early marriage of their sons because there were

other sons and daughters to be married after him. Caste, religion, the composition of children,

household income, father’s education, and age at which father got married were the significant

factors that contributed to early marriage of young men.

Conclusion: Fathers play a vital role in deciding the marriage of their sons, including age of

marriage, and it is important to engage them in discouraging early marriage of boys.

Programmatic efforts are required to alter the centuries old cultural practice of child marriages

in India’s villages.

Keywords: Male child marriage; Household wealth; Education; dowry, culture; India.

Why boys marry early?: An enquiry into factors associated with early marriage of

young men in rural Uttar Pradesh, India

Introduction:

Since long, the universality of marriages and a considerable proportion of early marriages have

been the salient features of Nuptiality in India (Saxena, 1962; Kashyap et al., 2015). Marriage

being a significant event in the life of boys as well girls, in cultural context, define their primary

roles and responsibilities as husbands and wives (Kalkan & Odaci, 2017; Daulay, 2017). Age

at marriage of girls as well as boys has been rising, but still, early marriages are a consistent

phenomenon across the countries (Raj et al., 2012). With early marriage, there comes new

responsibility for boys. In the age of going to school, a boy is burdened with responsibility,

which he may not be able to look upon. Across the country, many boys are betrothed so young

that they had to spend their adolescence as husbands. The younger they are married, the chances

of risk they face in the future increase, and it is more unlikely that they will succeed later in

life. Boys who are married early are not only denied their childhood, but also they are trapped

in the functions of societal roles and norms, which are lifelong, and sometimes it may have

intergenerational effects.

Male child marriage is a concern around the world; however, not as significant as female child

marriage. Studies have found that the prevalence of male child marriage ranges from as low as

6.6% in Guyana to as high as 26.7% in the Central African Republic (Misunas, Gaston, &

Cappa, 2019). Even though India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, it ranks

just above some of the poorest economies in the world in terms of the prevalence of child

marriage (Vogelstein, 2013). If it is not for the prevalence rate of child marriage, India ranks

first in the absolute number of child marriages (Vogelstein, 2013). The recent findings from

NFHS-4 demonstrate that a good proportion of men still get married at a very young age in

many states of India. NFHS report noted that 20.3% of the male, aged 25-29 years at the time

of the survey, were married before 21 years of age in India; however, the rural-urban

differences were stark. Nearly 24.4% of the male, aged 25-29 years at the time of the survey,

were married before 21 years of age in rural India, whereas, only 14.1% of the male, aged 25-

29 at the time of the survey, were married before 21 years of age in urban India. A recent study

highlighted that around one-third (32.94 %) of the men were married below 21 years of age in

India (Chauhan et al., 2020).

Research on the practice of child marriage has focussed mainly on its determinants and

outcomes among girls (Subramanian, 2008; Montazeri et al., 2016; Modak, 2019). The

outcomes of early marriage among girls have been studied in connection to early childbearing

(Winter & Nambiath, 2016). While documenting evidence of early marriage and its outcomes

among girls, researchers around the world neglected boys (Greene, 2014). Various studies have

noticed that boys too suffer from early marriage (Mukherjee & Sekher, 2017; Chauhan et al.,

2020). Despite the importance of age at marriage of males in India, studies on age at first

marriage of men and associated risk factors are minimal. Young adults might experience

distress due to early marriage. Unless more is known about their situation, there can be no

rational on the level of their hardship or of the social damage that is carried forward to teh next

generation. Early marriage may bring adverse effects such as psychosocial disadvantages,

hardship on financial grounds, lack of emotional maturity, the barrier of education, and

violence. Despite the importance, first-hand information on men’s age at marriage and its

implications are somewhat limited in the Indian context. Various studies have noted the

possible factors associated with early marriage among girls, but what factors are forcing a male

child into early marriage are yet to be explored (Mukherjee & Sekher, 2017).

Researchers across the world are aware of the negative impacts of child marriage on a wide

range of development outcomes among girls. Studies have pointed out the various domains of

development outcomes that get affected by early marriage among girls, from childbearing and

health perspectives to educational attainment and lost opportunities for economic partnerships.

However, there is not much scholarship available in the public domain regarding the factors

associated with early marriage among young men. With the plight of child brides is a familiar

narrative in Indi, boys too suffer from early marriage in the country. Therefore, it is imperative

to explore the factors associated with early marriage among young men. The main objectives

of this study are to explore various factors associated with male child marriage and to explore

the contribution of various factors in explaining the socio-economic inequality in male child

marriage.

Data Source and Methodology:

This study utilized primary data collected in Lalitpur and Shrawasti districts of Uttar Pradesh,

India. The primary data were collected from 1 June 2019 to 31 November 2019. A total of 348

married young men (below the age of 25 years) who married before age 21 years were

interviewed along with their fathers. Each of 174 married young men and their fathers were

interviewed from Lalitpur and Shrawasti. A total of twelve villages; six each from Lalitpur and

Shrawasti were selected for data collection. Furthermore, this study utilized information from

qualitative data collected as a part of case study and Key Informant Interviews (KII). For case

study, qualitative data were collected from young men who were married early. For KII,

qualitative data were collected from some fathers who married their sons early and from some

older adults who were living in the concerned area since their birth and had in-depth knowledge

about the cultural practices that revolve around early marriage.

Selection of Villages:

The selection of villages was undertaken systematically. At first stage, one block was selected

randomly from each district. After selection of one block, all the villages in that block with

more than 500 households were listed on the basis of literacy rate. The villages in block were

divided into three segments on the basis of literacy rate; high literacy, medium literacy, and

low literacy. From each of the segment based on literacy rate, two villages were selected

randomly. So, from one block, six villages were selected randomly; two each from three

segments of villages that were divided on the basis of literacy rate.

Selection of Villages in Lalitpur and Shrawasti districts based on Literacy level

Literacy level Lalitpur (Talbehat Block) Shrawasti (Hariharpur Rani Block)

Low Literacy Pawa Pura Kalan Chahlwa Rajapur Rani

Medium Literacy Khandi Kadesra Kalan Chakwa Luxmanpur Itwaria

High Literacy Bamhorisar Serwans kalan Pure Adhari Hariharpur Rani

Outcome Variable:

Early marriage among males is the primary outcome variable of this study. The study is based

on 348 males married below 21 years of age. The variable of early marriage has been divided

into two parts to make it dichotomous. All the marriage below 18 years were coded as 0 and

marriage above 17 years, but below 21 years were coded as 1. For the ease of flow and

discussion, this study termed the outcome variable as below 18 years and below 21 years.

Below 18 years means that a male was married before age 18 years and below 21 years means

that a male was married before reaching age 21 years but after 17 years (Precisely it means

marriage at age 18, 19, and 20 years). Hence, child marriage below 21 does not include

marriage below 18 years and is independent of below 18 years categorization.

Exposure Variable:

Exposure variables were divided into three groups; 1. Household factors; Caste (Scheduled

Caste/ Scheduled Tribe and Non-Scheduled Caste/Non-Scheduled Tribe), Religion (Hindu and

Non-Hindu), Household Income (Less than 5000 per month, 5000-9999, 10000-19999, and

20000 and above), and Composition of Children (Equal son and daughter, Daughter more, and

Son more/no daughter). 2. Father’s characteristics; Father’s education level (No education, Up

to primary, up to secondary, and higher secondary and above) and Age at which father married

(Below 21 years and 21 and above 21 years). 3. Mother’s characteristics; Mother’s education

level (No education, Up to primary, up to secondary, and higher secondary and above) and Age

at which mother married (Below 18 years and 18 and above 18 years).

Statistical Analysis:

The study uses bivariate analysis and logistic regression analysis for analyzing the results. For

logistic regression, the outcome variable has to be dichotomous in nature. The study used male

child marriage as an outcome variable that was categorized as dichotomous; below 18 years

and below 21 years. The terminology below 18 and below 21 has been discussed in the outcome

variable section. For logistic regression, below 21 was taken as the reference category, and

results were presented for below 18 years with various exposure variables.

Concentration Index (CI) and concentration curve (CC) were calculated to measure the socio-

economic inequality in male child marriage. The concentration index presents the extent or

magnitude of inequality, socio-economic in particular by measuring the area between the CC

and line of perfect equality. The formula used is as follow:-

𝑪 =𝟐

𝝁𝒄𝒐𝒗(𝒚𝒊,𝑹𝒊)

The index value lies between -1 to 1. The value below zero represents that the inequality for

the discussed outcome is concentrated among the poor. In contrast, the value above zero

represents that inequality is concentrated among the well-off population.

Further, decomposition of CI was done to understand the percent contribution of various

background factors to male child marriage. Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition is an approach to

identify and quantify the factors associated with inter-group differences in the mean level of

outcome. In the present study, this reveals how the differences in male child marriage between

the poor and non-poor households can be explained by differences in socioeconomic status

between the groups. Hence, we used the Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition technique modified

for binary outcomes to decompose the gap between poor and non-poor in male child marriage.

For the decomposition analysis, we used the ‘Fairlie’ command available in Stata 10. The

exposure variables in this study were first tested for possible multicollinearity before

underatking the analysis.

Ethical Issues:

The questionnaire was presented before the Student Research Ethics Committee (SREC) of the

institute for their approval. Once approval was given from the institute ethics committee,

further ethical approval was taken from the concerned government authority in Lalitpur and

Shrawasti districts. At last, written consent was taken from the individual respondent.

Participation in the study was voluntary, and participants were allowed to withdraw at any point

during the survey.

Results:

Table 1 shows the socio-economic background characteristics of males in Lalitpur and

Shrawasti. The background factors were divided into three parts; household characteristics,

father’s characteristics, and mother’s characteristics. Nearly one-third of the sample population

in Lalitpur belonged to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) (34.5%) whereas, only

5.2 percent of the sampled population in Shrawasti belonged to SC/ST. Nearly 90 percent of

the male selected population in Lalitpur belonged to the Hindu religion, whereas, around 70

percent of the selected male population in Shrawasti belonged to Hindu religion. Overall,

nearly 80 percent of the selected population belonged to the Hindu religion. Nearly two-fifths

of the sampled males in Lalitpur (19.5%) and one-fourths of the selected males in Shrawasti

(27.6%) belonged to households with less than 5000 monthly income. Nearly one-fourth of the

households in Lalitpur (24.1%) and Shrawasti (26.4%) had an equal number of sons and

daughters. Around 12.1 percent of households in Lalitpur and 19.5 percent of the households

in Shrawasti had more daughters than sons in the family. More than half of the fathers of the

sampled male had no education in Lalitpur (54.6%) and Shrawasti (56.3%). Similarly, around

two-thirds of the mothers of the sampled males had no education in Lalitpur (59.8%) and

Shrawasti (64.4%). Nearly 83.3 percent of the fathers of the selected males were married below

21 years of age in Lalitpur, and around 87.4 percent of fathers of selected males were married

below 21 years of age in Shrawasti. Similarly, Nearly 83.3 percent of the mothers of the

selected males were married below 18 years of age in Lalitpur, and around 85.1 percent of

mothers of selected males were married below 18 years of age in Shrawasti.

Figure 1 shows the prevalence of male child marriage in Lalitpur and Shrawasti. Nearly three-

fourths of the male in Shrawasti (74.7%) were married below 21 years of age, and the remaining

one-fourth of the male were married below 18 years of age. Similarly, nearly 70 percent of the

male in Lalitpur were married below 21 years of age, and the remaining 30 percent of the male

in Lalitpur were married below 18 years of age. Overall, around 72 percent of the male were

married below 21 years of age, and the remaining 28 percent were married below 18 years of

age.

Figure 2 and figure 3 depicts reasons for male child marriage. Data were collected from father

as well as his son, who was married early. Figure 2 depicts the reasons for early marriage from

the father’s perspective, and figure 3 depicts the reason for early marriage from that male

child’s perspective who was married early. These two figure shows the difference of opinion

between father and his son. Figure 2 depicts the reasons for which fathers married their sons

early. Three most contributing factors to why fathers married their sons early were; other sons

and daughters to get married in the household (19%), need a bride to take care of household

work (17.2%), and son dropped out of school (12.4%). Nearly one-fifth (20.2%) of the fathers

in Lalitpur and 17.9 percent of the fathers in Shrawasti married their sons early because there

were other sons and daughters to be married after him. Nearly 19.5 percent of fathers in Lalitpur

and 14.9 percent of fathers in Shrawasti married their sons early to bring a bride who could

look after the household work. Nearly 14.4 percent of fathers in Lalitpur and 10.4 percent of

fathers in Shrawasti married their sons early because their sons were dropped out of school.

Results further noted that around 5.5 percent of fathers married their sons early because

household was in need of money. It was expected that marrying son would bring dowry amount

and that will cater the need of household’s requirement. Similar results were also noticed from

key informant interviews. A respondent opined that “I had to marry my son twice after his

first wife left him. I needed money for his operation and so I decided to marry my son again

so that I can get some money in dowry.”

Figure 3 depicts the reasons for which the male child was married early. The response was

recorded from the male child only who was married early, and so this figure depicts the reasons

for early marriage from a male child’s perspective. Three most contributing reasons to the male

child marriage include; other siblings in the household to marry, everyone in the village marry

early, and needed a woman to take care of the household work. Nearly one-third of the male in

Lalitpur (33.3%) and Shrawasti (32.2%) feel that they were married early because there were

other siblings to be married in the household. Nearly 22.5 percent of males in Lalitpur and 14.3

percent male in Shrawasti feel that they were married early because everyone in their village

get marry early. Nearly 12.6 percent of males in Lalitpur and 10.3 percent males in Shrawasti

feel that they were married early because someone was needed at home to carry out the

household work. Around 4.6 percent of males in Lalitpur and 2.9 percent of males in Shrawasti

were married early because their grandfathers/grandmothers insisted their early marriage.

Results from case studies also noted this issue and a respondent from Lalitpur opined that “I

married early because of my grandfather so that he can die peacefully, He is living his life

happily after that, and I am dying every day.” Figure 2 and 3 also shows the difference in

opinion between father and their son. Around 19 percent of fathers said that they married their

son early because there were other sons and daughters to be married, whereas around one-third

(32.8%) of the male reported that they were married because there were other siblings who

were to be married after him.

Table 2 shows the bivariate analysis of male child marriage in Lalitpur and Shrawasti by

various background characteristics. Child marriages were divided into below 18 and below 21

years, and the same categorization has been discussed in detail in the methodology section.

Results found that around 32 percent of the Non-SC/ST children were married below 18 years

in Lalitpur, whereas, only one-fourth (24.9%) of the Non-SC/ST children were married below

18 years in Shrawasti. Nearly 32.5 percent of Hindu male in Lalitpur and 29.8 percent of Hindu

male in Shrawasti were married below 18 years of age. The male marriage below 18 years was

highly concentrated in lower-income group households in both districts, nearly 62 percent in

Lalitpur and 44 percent in Shrawasti. In Shrawasti, around two-fifths (41.2%) of the male who

were married below 18 years belonged to a household where the number of daughters was more

than the number of sons. More than one-third of the male whose father either had no education

(36.8%) or had primary education (38.5%) were married below 18 years in Lalitpur. Age at

which father and mother got married also impacted the age at marriage of the male. Around 32

percent of the males were married below 18 years when their fathers were married below 21

years, whereas only 23 percent of males were married below 18 years when their fathers were

married after 21 years in Lalitpur.

Table 3 shows the estimates of logistic regression for male child marriage in Lalitpur and

Shrawasti. The odds of male marriage below 18 years among SC/ST males were two times and

three times higher in Lalitpur and Shrawasti, respectively, as compared to the male who

belonged to Non-SC/ST in both districts. The Non-Hindu males in Lalitpur were around 76

percent less likely to marry below 18 years as compared to Hindu males, whereas, Non-Hindu

males in Shrawasti were around 82 percent less likely to marry below 18 years as compared to

Hindu Male. Results noted that odds of male marrying before 18 years decrease significantly

with an increase in household income in both districts. The composition of children in a

household is another relevant factor associated with early male marriage. In Lalitpur as well as

Shrawasti, male children who belonged to households where the number of daughters was more

than the number of sons were around 1.4 times more likely to marry before 18 years than the

male child who belonged to households where the number of daughters was equal to the

number of sons. However, in Shrawasti, male children who belonged to households where the

number of sons was more than the number of daughters were around 1.6 times more likely to

marry before 18 years than the male child who belonged to households where the number of

daughters was equal to the number of sons. Male whose father had higher education were 88

percent less likely to marry before 18 years of age than those males whose father had no

education in Lalitpur. Similarly, males whose father had higher education were 77 percent less

likely to marry before 18 years of age than those males whose father had no education in

Shrawasti. Males whose father were married at age 21 years and above were 68 percent less

likely to marry before 18 years of age than those males whose father were married below 21

years in Lalitpur. Male whose mothers were highly educated were less likely to marry below

18 years than those males whose mothers were uneducated.

Results from Concentration Curve and Decomposition Analysis:

Figure 4 depicts the concentration curve for child marriage in Lalitpur and Shrawasti. Child

marriage among males was more towards the line of equality in Lalitpur than in Shrawasti,

which suggested that early marriages are highly concentrated among poor households in

Shrawasti than in Lalitpur. The above result was also confirmed by the logistic regression

analysis, as explained through table 3. The negative CI values for early marriage in Lalitpur (-

0.071) and Shrawasti (-0.266) depict an inequality in child marriages among males and is more

concentrated towards poor household as compared to rich households. Results from case

studies and KII also highlighted poverty as one of the important causes of early marriage. One

of the key informants from Shrawasti informed that “Early marriage persist because of

widespread poverty in the village. Poverty reduces education chances which further makes

young men vulnerable to early marriage.” Another key informant from Lalitpur had the same

opinion about early marriage among men “Poverty lies to the core in the family in villages,

poverty is so deepen that father prefer to marry their son early which serves two purpose-

first, marrying early reduces marital expenses and second, extra family member (daughter-

in-law) means extra income in the household as daughters-in-law work in the agricultural

field for paid work.”

Table 4 presents estimates from decomposition analysis depicting the percentage contribution

of variables in explaining the gap for child marriage among poor and non-poor households. A

positive contribution depicts that the variable is widening the gap for child marriage between

poor and non-poor households. In contrast, a negative contribution narrows down the gap of

male child marriage between poor and non-poor households. It was found that household

income (46.9%) contributed most towards widening the gap for male child marriage between

poor and non-poor households, followed by father’s educational status (19.5%). However,

households from non-Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe category (-9.5%) negatively

contributed, i.e., narrowed down the gap for child male marriage for poor and non-poor

households. The model explained nearly 43 percent of inequality in the male child marriage.

There are 35 percent chances that a male will get marry below 18 years of age, as depicted

through the predictive probability. Furthermore, there are 17 percent chances that a male will

get marry below 21 years of age, as depicted through predicted probability. The decomposition

analysis presents an interesting finding which is corresponding to a result discussed in table 3.

A result from table 3 discusses that in Shrawasti, male children who belonged to households

where the number of sons was more than the number of daughters were around 1.6 times more

likely to marry before 18 years than the male children who belonged to households where the

number of daughters was equal to the number of sons. The result from decomposition analysis

found that in households where the number of sons is more than the number of daughters, male

child marriages are concentrated among poor in such households. Results from case studies

and key informant interviews also noted that more number of siblings is another predictor of

early marriage among young men. One case study from Lalitpur reckons the issue of number

of siblings and early marriage in his statement and opined that “Of six siblings, aged 16, I was

the eldest. My marriage was fixed on the same date on which one of my younger sisters was

to be married. Both the marriages were arranged to the same household without any demand

for dowry.” Another respondent from Shrawasti recalled that “I requested my father not to

marry me early. He said that my eldest sister is old enough to get marry and it will not be a

good idea to delay her marriage further. She could get marry only from the amount you will

receive in your dowry.”

Discussion:

This study attempted to explore various factors associated with male child marriage in Lalitpur

and Shrawasti. Also, the study provides insights into the contribution of various socio-

economic factors in the prevalence of male child marriage. Several significant findings

emerged from this study; 1. The likelihood of male marriages below 18 years was found to be

higher in SC/ST than their counterparts; 2. Higher the household income, lower the odds of

male marrying below 18 years; 3. The composition of children in a household is also a factor

associated with male child marriage; 4. Father’s characteristics were found to be associated

with male child marriage; 5. Household Income and father’s education level were the two most

significant contributory factors in explaining inequality in male child marriage; 6. As depicted

through the concentration curve, male child marriages were found to be concentrated among

poor households.

Results found a higher odds for male marrying below 18 years of age among SC/ST

households. In the Indian social context, SC/ST are termed as deprived caste groups and are

generally socially backward caste groups (Gorringe, Jodhka, & Takhar, 2017). Furthermore,

studies have noted socio-economic inequalities among deprived caste in India (Kumar & Yazir;

2017). The deprived caste has low socio-economic status (Bhagavatheeswaran et al., 2016; Das

& Halder, 2018; Raj, 2018), which has been reflected in this study through higher child

marriage among them. Previously, a few studies have highlighted the higher prevalence of male

child marriage in SC/ST caste groups (Mukherjee & Sekher, 2017; Chauhan et al., 2020).

Marriage squeeze disfavouring males could also be a plausible reason for higher rates of male

child marriage among SC/ST caste groups. A study has noted that marriage squeeze was higher

among males from Schedule Tribe in India, and Schedule Tribe group is facing bride shortage

(Vishwakarma, Shekhar, & Yadav; 2019). Household income emerged as a safety net against

male child marriage. Results noticed that males who belonged to higher-income households

were less likely to marry below age 18 than males who belonged to low-income households.

Furthermore, nearly 47 percent of the inequality in the prevalence of male child marriage was

explained through household income. Previous studies also noticed a higher prevalence of male

child marriage in the poorest households than in richest households (Mukherjee & Sekher,

2017; Misunas, Gaston, & Cappa, 2019; Chauhan et al., 2020). Higher-income provides

households a bargaining capacity that reduces the likelihood of early marriage. Studies have

highlighted that poorer households save money to marry off their children at an early age. In

contrast, wealthier households tend to invest in the education of the children, which further

delays the marriage (Wodon et al., 2017).

The composition of children is another factor found to be associated with male child marriage.

Male child marriages were higher in households where the number of daughters was higher

than in those households where the number of sons and daughters were equal. It is assumed

that a higher number of daughters in a household make the male child vulnerable to early

marriage. More daughters in a household mean a higher burden on the father to marry his

children, and marrying a male child early may be one of the coping mechanisms to deal with

the pressure. Results from decomposition analysis found that male child marriage in

households with a higher number of daughters was concentrated in poor households. Based on

this finding, it is assumed that marrying a male child early may bring dowry amount, which

further may be used in marrying daughters in poor households. Furthermore, it was evidently

concluded through this study that around one-third of the males were married early because

other siblings were to get marry in the household after him. A study evidently noticed that the

numbers of siblings to be married in the family is one of the predictors of child marriage

(Udgiri, 2017). Father’s characteristics were also found to be associated with male child

marriage. The higher level of education among fathers declines the odds of male child

marriage. Previous studies have highlighted the importance of parent’s education in reducing

the likelihood of child marriage (Ali et al., 2014). Parental education attempts to bring a change

in social norms, and educated parents are more likely to embrace changes in the custom of

early marriage (Malhotra et al., 2011).

Strengths and Limitations:

The study is based on primary data with limited sample size. Therefore, findings cannot be

generalized at the national level and project only a community picture. Despite the limited

sample size, the study provides impactful evidence related to early male marriage in Lalitpur

and Shrawasti. One of the strengths of the study is the inclusion of information from the fathers

alongside the information collected from the male child who was married early. The inclusion

of information from fathers provides deeper insights into the practice of early male marriage

and associated determinants.

Conclusions:

A little more than one-fourth of the male in Lalitpur and Shrawasti got married below 18 years

of age, and remaining were married below 21 years of age. Such a considerable proportion of

males marrying below 18 years is a concern and needs serious interventions. Limited research

on male child marriage has probably obstructed the implementation of any large-scale policy

efforts to eradicate the practice of early marriage among men. Moreover, lack of effective legal

mechanism in practice has aggravated the problem of early marriage (Goli & Jaleel, 2014).

Results from this study help in bridging the literature gap, and it is recommended that further

research shall be undertaken on a bigger scale to understand the determinants of the male child

marriage in India. On a policy front, Information, Education, and Communication (IEC)

programs need to be strengthened. There is a need to disperse information about the legal age

at marriage across the rural areas, and imparting education shall be the priority. Father plays a

vital role in deciding the marriage of their son, and it is important to engage fathers in

discouraging early male marriage. Although marriage registration is compulsory in India, but

the practice is hardly being followed, specifically in rural India. Therefore, promoting a

compulsory yet straightforward and user-friendly way to register marriage would definitely

question the practice of early marriage.

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Table 1 Socio-economic characteristics of sample male respondents in selected districts

Covariates Lalitpur (174) Shrawasti (174) Total (348)

Household’s Characteristics

Caste

Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe 34.5 5.2 19.8

Non Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe 65.5 94.8 80.2

Religion

Hindu 90.2 69.5 79.9

Non-Hindu 9.8 30.5 20.1

Household Income (Monthly)

Less than 5000 19.5 27.6 23.6

5000-9999 46.0 40.8 43.4

10000-19999 20.7 14.9 17.8

20000 and above 13.8 16.7 15.2

Composition of children

Equal son and daughter 24.1 26.4 25.3

Daughter more 12.1 19.5 15.8

Son more/no daughter 63.8 54.0 58.9

Father’s Characteristics

Father’s Educational level

No education 54.6 56.3 55.5

Primary 14.9 21.3 18.1

Secondary 19.0 13.8 16.4

Higher Secondary and Above 11.5 8.6 10.1

Age at which father got married

Below 21 years 82.2 87.4 84.8

21 and above 21 years 17.8 12.6 15.2

Mother’s Characteristics

Mother’s Educational level

No education 59.8 64.4 62.1

Primary 24.1 23.6 23.9

Secondary 9.8 3.5 6.6

Higher Secondary and Above 6.3 8.6 7.5

Age at which mother got married

Below 18 years 83.3 85.1 84.2

18 and above 18 years 16.7 14.9 15.8

Table 2 Bivariate analysis of males who married below 18 and 21 years of age by background

characteristics in study districts

Covariates Lalitpur (174) Shrawasti (174) Total (348)

Below 18 Below 21 Below 18 Below 21 Below 18 Below 21


Caste

Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe 28.3 71.7 33.3 66.7 29 71

Non Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe 31.6 68.4 24.9 75.1 27.6 72.4

Religion

Hindu 32.5 67.5 29.8 70.2 31.3 68.7

Non-Hindu 11.8 88.2 15.1 84.9 14.3 85.7

Household Income (in Rupees)

annual or monthly?

Less than 5000 61.8 38.2 43.8 56.2 51.2 48.8

5000-9999 35 65 25.4 74.6 30.5 69.5

10000-19999 5.6 94.4 7.7 92.3 6.5 93.5

20000 and above 8.3 91.7 10.3 89.7 9.4 90.6


Equal son and daughter 28.6 71.4 28.3 71.7 28.4 71.6

Daughter more 28.6 71.4 41.2 58.8 36.4 63.6

Son more/no daughter 31.5 68.5 18.1 81.9 25.4 74.6



No education 36.8 63.2 29.6 70.4 33.2 66.8

Primary 38.5 61.5 29.7 70.3 33.3 66.7

Secondary 18.2 81.8 16.7 83.3 17.5 82.5

Higher Secondary and Above 10 90 0.0 100 5.7 94.3


Below 21 years 32.2 67.8 25 75 28.5 71.5

21 and above 21 years 22.6 77.4 27.3 72.7 24.5 75.5



No education 35.6 64.4 28.6 71.4 31.9 68.1

Primary 23.8 76.2 19.5 80.5 21.7 78.3

Secondary 23.5 76.5 16.7 83.3 21.7 78.3

Higher Secondary and Above 18.2 81.8 20 80 19.2 80.8


Below 18 years 31.7 68.3 23 77 27.3 72.7

18 and above 18 years 24.1 75.9 38.5 61.5 30.9 69.1

TOTAL 30.5 69.5 25.3 74.7 27.9 72.1

Table 3: Logistic regression estimates for marriage of young males in Lalitpur and Shrawasti Covariates Lalitpur (174) Shrawasti (174) Total (348)


Caste

Non Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe Ref. Ref. Ref.

Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe 1.94**(1.05,4.33) 2.98**(1.2,3.57) 2.84** (1.31,3.88)

Religion

Hindu Ref. Ref. Ref.

Non-Hindu 0.24*(0.11,0.55) 0.18*(0.03,1.02) 0.29*(0.1,0.84)

Household Income(monthly)In Rupees

Less than 5000 Ref. Ref. Ref.

5000-9999 0.46*(0.25,0.85) 0.3*(0.11,0.77) 0.7(0.27,1.84)

10000-19999 0.14*(0.02,0.25) 0.09*(0,0.15) 0.32*(0.06,1.82)

20000 and above 0.08*(0.04,0.43) 0.04*(0.01,0.27) 0.36**(0.07,1.77)


Equal son and daughter Ref. Ref. Ref.

Daughter more 1.4**(0.6,3.27) 1.34*(0.33,5.47) 2.59*(0.75,8.95)

Son more/no daughter 0.99(0.51,1.93) 1.62*(0.63,4.2) 0.6(0.2,1.76)



No education Ref. Ref. Ref.

Primary 1.4(0.55,3.53) 1.29(0.31,5.34) 2.69(0.67,10.74)

Secondary 0.44*(0.16,1.27) 0.35*(0.09,1.44) .69*(0.16,6.46)

Higher 0.12*(0.02,0.95) 0.23*(0.02,2.55) 0.20** (0.04,1.69)


Below 21 years Ref. Ref. Ref.

21 and above 21 years 0.32*(0.05,1.93) .78*(0.04,7.06) 0.42*(0.01,2.26)



No education Ref. Ref. Ref.

Primary 0.63(0.24,1.64) 0.54(0.14,2.07) 0.36(0.07,1.78)

Secondary 3.77(0.77,18.39) 1.92(0.26,14.27) 8.31(0.29,240.25)

Higher 0.35*(0.12,2.56) 0.43*(0.1,8.75) 0.32*(0.02,5.53)


Below 18 years Ref. Ref. Ref.

18 and above 18 years 5.61(0.91,34.41) 0.78(0.03,19.2) 3.55(1.49,626.24)

Table 4: Estimates from decomposition analysis representing differentials in male

child marriage among poor and non-poor households

Covariates Coefficient z-stat % contribution Household’s Characteristics Percent Total %

Caste

Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe Ref.

Non- Scheduled caste/ Scheduled tribe -0.017 -1.520 -9.5 -9.5

Religion

Hindus Ref.

Muslims -0.010 -1.750 -5.4 -5.4

Household Income(monthly) In Rupees

Less than 5000 Ref.

5000-9999 0.010 -1.470 -5.7

10000-19999 0.039 3.610 21.5

20000 and above 0.056 2.120 31.1 46.9


Equal son and daughter Ref.

Daughter more -0.001 -0.100 -0.2

Son more/no daughter -0.002 -0.450 -1.0 -1.2



No education Ref.

Primary 0.001 0.160 0.5

Secondary 0.014 1.520 7.5

Higher 0.021 0.640 11.5 19.5


Below 21 years Ref.

21 and above 21 years 0.001 0.190 0.8 0.8



No education Ref.

Primary 0.001 0.380 0.8

Secondary -0.017 -1.010 -9.5

Higher 0.008 0.810 4.4 -4.3

Age at which mother got married Below 18 years Ref. 18 and above 18 years -0.007 -0.760 -4.1 -4.1

Number of observations 348 42.8

Predictive probability of poor males

getting married below age 18 0.35 Predictive probability of poor males

getting married below age 21 0.17 Difference 0.18 Total explained 0.08

Figure-1 Prevalence of early marriage among males in selected study districts.

74

.7

25

.3

69

.5

30

.5

72

.1

27

.9

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

1 8 Yea r s

and Ab o ve

B e lo w 1 8

yea r s

1 8 Yea r s

and Ab o ve

B e lo w 1 8

yea r s

1 8 Yea r s

and Ab o ve

B e lo w 1 8

yea r s

Shrawas t i l a l i t p ur T o ta l

Perc

enta

ge

Selected Districts

F i g u r e 1 : P r e v a l e n c e o f M a r r i a g e s B e l o w 1 8 Y e a r s A n d 2 1 Y e a r s a m o n g m a l e s I n L a l i t p u r a n d S h r a w a s t i d i s t r i c t s

1917.2

12.4

9.88.9

7.55.5 4.9 4.6

2.8 2.6 2.6 2.2

20.2 19.5

14.4

9.8

5.77 6.4

0.6

6.3

1.1

3.4 3.42.2

17.9

14.9

10.4 9.8

12.1

8

4.6

9.2

2.94.6

1.7 1.7 2.2

0

5

10

15

20

25

Other sonsand

daughters toget married

Need bride totake care ofhousehold

work

Son droppedout of school

It is difficultto get goodbride later

Son himselfwant to get

married

Son maymarry girl

from outsidecaste

Householdwas in need

of money

I wanted tofulfil my

responsibilty

Delayingmarriage

could bringless dowry

Son washaving badcompany/

bad friends

Girl sideoffered thegood dowry

Marriage wasinsisted by

grandfather/grandmother

Others

Figure 2: Reasons for parents arranged early marriage of their sons in Lalitpur and Shrawasti districts

(based on interviews with fathers of young men who got married before 21 years of age)

Total Lalitpur Shrawasti

32.8

18.4

11.5 11.2

7.25.2

4.3 3.7 3.72

33.3

22.5

12.610.9

6.9

4.6 4

0

4.6

0.6

32.2

14.3

10.311.5

7.55.7

4.6

7.5

2.9 3.5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Other siblings tobe married after

me

Everyone in ourvillage get marry

early

Needed awomen to take

careofhousehold

work

Girl side offeredthe good dowry

Parents felt thatI was notbehaving

responsibly

I want to getmarried then

I dropped out ofschool and doing

nothing

Parents want tocomplete theirresponsibilities

Insisted bygrandfather/grandmother

Other reasons

Figure 3: Reasons for early marriage from the perspective of young males who got married before

attaining 21 years of age in Lalitpur and Shrawasti districts

Total Lalitpur Shrawasti

Figure-4 Concentration curve for early marriage among males in Lalitpur and Shrawasti

districts

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

Cu

mu

lati

ve s

har

e o

f ch

ild m

ale

mar

riag

e

Cumulative share of wealth

Line of Ineqility Total (-0.167) Shrawasti (-0.266) Lalitpur (-0.071)

why boys marry early?: an enquiry into factors associated

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