EARLY MARRIAGES, AUTONOMY AND AFTERTHOUGHTS: INVESTIGATING MARITAL AGE REGRET THROUGH THE LENS OF CONSENT AMONG THE ROMA COMMUNITY IN TÜRKİYE
Özet
This thesis examines the phenomenon of child marriage within the Roma community
in Turkey, with a particular focus on the concept of "marital age regret" and the role
of autonomy in marital decision-making. This study employs data from the 2023
"Demographic Integration and Differentiation Levels and Policy Priorities of the
Roma Population in Turkey (ROMA.AR)" survey to conduct a quantitative analysis
of the demographic, marital, and socioeconomic factors associated with child marriage
and their impact on retrospective feelings of regret concerning marital age. The
research findings indicate that while a considerable proportion of Roma women marry
as children, the level of agency involved in these decisions has a significant impact on
their subsequent reflections on the timing of their marriage. The study employs a
comprehensive theoretical framework integrating Social Contract Theory, the concept
of informed consent, and ethnocentrism to contextualize these findings within the
broader societal and cultural dynamics of the Roma community. The study's statistical
analysis, including Kruskal-Wallis and post hoc tests, reveals that while forced
marriages are associated with higher levels of regret, and self-decided and arranged
marriages exhibit lesser degrees of regret, all demographic groups of women express
regret regarding their marriage age if they experienced child marriage. The findings
highlight the necessity for culturally sensitive approaches to addressing child marriage,
underscoring the significance of promoting individual autonomy and informed
decision-making. This research contributes to the academic discourse on child
marriage and social issues within the Roma population in Türkiye, while providing
crucial insights for policymakers aiming to reduce its prevalence and mitigate its long-
term consequences.
