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Comprehensive Child Marriage Research Library

Child Marriage Is Rare in the U.S., Though This Varies by State

Author(s):

Object Type:

McClendon, David; Sandstorm, Aleksandra

Data

Year & Month/Season:

2016

1

November

Publication/Publisher:

Pew Research Center

Peer Reviewed

true

PDF Available?

true

Public Link:

ISSN (If Available)

N/A

If Journal Article:

ISBN (If Book):

Page Start

N/A

Page End

N/A

Volume

N/A

Issue

N/A

DOI

N/A

N/A

Students Against Child Marriage's Object Summary:

This article uses American Community Survey data from 2014 to explore the prevalence rate of child marriage in the US. That year, the national average was that five out of every 1,000 children were married. However, certain states like Texas and West Virginia, as well as Arkansas, California, Oklahoma, Nevada, North Carolina, and Tennessee, had above average child marriage rates. Overall, the Northeast and the Midwest have the lowest child marriage rates by region. Child marriage is legal in the United States through exceptions based on parental consent, judicial approval, and pregnancies. The majority of minors married were girls (55 to 45%) and this gender ratio increases at older ages where greater numbers of women were married between 18 and 24. It should also be noted that because these numbers come from American Community Survey data, they are self-reported and therefore likely underestimates of actual child marriage prevalence.

Article Abstract (If Available):

N/A

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