Marriage is an event of happiness and it becomes a social demand to someone reaching a certain age. However, determination of suitable age of a person for marriage varies. Some communities understand about the regulations according to law no 16 of 2019 which stipulates that the minimum age of marriage is at least 19 years. Some other communities have a tradition from their ancestors to marry their children even before the age of 19, which means they are still attending high school, even junior high or elementary school. Whose influence is this? Who will protect these school age children?
Before we answer that question, we need to see what kind of impact a person would have if they married at a very young age. Research shows that the impact of early marriage will affect the young women more. These impacts include physical, psychological and social impacts. Physically, marriage is likely to be followed by pregnancy. Pregnancy at a young age poses various risks of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Even after the baby is born, the risk of improper parenting also occurs due to the mentally and socially immature parents. Furthermore, at that age, average financial needs have not been fulfilled optimally. It will have an impact on children’s child’s growth and nutritional intake as well as limited access to various education and health services.
So, if there is still a practice in any communities that continues the tradition of marriage at a young age, whose influence is it? What are the wishes of individuals who marry young? What is the influence of the social environment? These two things are discussed in an article entitled “Relationship of Individual Factors, and Social Factors with Mother’s Intention to Continue Early Marriage Tradition in Indonesia”. This article is the result of research to the people in Sumenep Madura who were studied because there are still many practices of early marriages. Researchers interviewed 10 women and 22 people in the women’s social circle to get information about the reasons these women married young and whether they intend to continue the tradition of marrying off their children at a young age.
The research findings are very informative because of direct interviews with women who married at a young age. This article examines various reasons given by the women who became informants, and supported by information from people living around the women. The results of the interviews showed how individuals and societies influence the tradition of early marriage. It is highly recommended for readers who are interested in these two questions to read the article ” Relationship of Individual Factors, and Social Factors with Mother’s Intention to Continue Early Marriage Tradition in Indonesia “
Author: Ira Nurmala
Details of this research can be found at: Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology, July-September 2020, Vol. 14, No. 3 (eISSN 0973-9130) pages 1075-1079 (Article serial number: 194). Articles can be accessed via the following link: http://www.ijfmt.com/issues.html
Nurma FA, Nurmala, I. (2020). Relationship of Individual Factors, and Social Factors with Mother’s Intention to Continue Early Marriage Tradition in Indonesia. Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology , 14 (3), 1075-1079.
