Associations of Age at Marriage With Marital Decision-Making Agency Among Adolescent Wives in Rural Niger

Abstract

The study suggests that marrying as a very young adolescent places girls in even more disadvantaged positions regarding decision-making. These findings indicate the need to design programs targeted at addressing inequitable gender norms to reduce early child marriage and increase participation in decision-making. Further study of satisfaction with participation in decision-making is recommended, including consideration of whether it is related to gender norms for participation in decisions rather than actual participation.