Abstract:

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of adolescents referred to a university hospital by the judicial authority for determining whether any mental and physical impediments to marriage exist. Materials and Methods: 70 adolescents who were consulted to child and adolescent psychiatry inquired by the judicial authorities if there was any impediment to marriage were included to study. Psychiatric examination of the adolescents was performed according to DSM 5. Data obtained from the study were examined retrospectively with the method of file scanning system Results: Mostly (94.3%) female children with a mean age of 16.05 ± 0.2 years were included in the study. None of the children attended to school during the assessment. Most (89.5%) of the children were living in a family environment with a low socioeconomic level. The most frequently psychiatric diagnoses were; attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (%4.3, n=3), depressive disorder (%4.3, n=3), mental retardation (%2.8, n=2) and post-traumatic stress disorder (%1.4, n=1). 85.7% of the children decided to marry individuals they got acquainted from their immediate circle or from social media, while marriage of only 14.3% (n=10) of them were previously arranged by their families. Conclusions : Socio-economic level, family characteristics and attending to school are important predisposing factors for early marriages. It was also considered that marriage at this age means an attempt for gaining an early autonomy. Encouraging to continue their formal education for the development of healthy autonomy will be an important factor to prevent early marriages.

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