Psychiatric Disorders and Sociodemographic Characteristics in Children Intended to Get Married at a Young Age

Objective: The aim of the study was to psychiatrically eva-luate children who brought to a child and adolescent psychiatry clinic for a forensic evaluation and asked by the courts whether they were ready to marry mentally and physically. Moreover, the determination of factors related to the intention to get these children married at a early age and the examination of socio-demographic characteristics are among the other aims. Method: 54 children who were asked by the courts whether they were ready to marry mentally and physically were included in the study. The Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version scale was applied. Additionally, WISC-R intelligence test was applied and a socio-demographic data form was filled. Results: 98.1 % (n=53) of the children intended to get married consisted of females. There was at least one psychiatric disorder in 27.8 % (n=15) of these children. When the children were brought to a forensic evaluation, 63% of them stated that they were married with religious marriage and 18% of them stated that they were engaged. 44% of those married with religouos marriage had children or were pregnant. Almost all children did not attend school (98.1 %). The educational level of the parents in these families, most of which were determined to have a low socioeconomic level, was considerably low. Discussion: The low level of education and socio-cultural level are considered to be among important factors related to marrying children at a young age. Children got married at a young age are devoid of many rights with education being in the first place and they may face situations such as being pregnant and having children before completing their cognitive and psychosocial development.