Child marriage amongst Syrian refugees : a rational response?

Abstract

This paper provides a comparative analysis of regional and country level Refugee Response Plans for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey between 2015-2018 to analyse the extent to which the they address the key drivers of the increase in child marriage amongst refugee girls. Recent studies have challenged the dominant policy discourse on preventing child marriage in humanitarian and displacement settings by encouraging a shift away from norms-based approaches and advocating instead for a needs-driven approach that addresses the structural drivers of child marriage in emergency settings (Mourtada, Schlecht, and Dejong 2017). By applying a behavioural perspective to existing literature on child marriage amongst Syrian refugees, this dissertation highlights that, whilst customs and social norms do influence decisions regarding child marriage, the increase in child marriage rates can also be understood as a type of rational response or coping mechanism against the economic, safety and educational challenges faced by displaced families. Through analysis of how regional and country Refugee Response Plans have addressed the main displacement-related drivers of child marriage, this dissertation shows that a shift in understanding and framings of child marriage from a “harmful traditional practice” to a “negative coping mechanism” has been concomitant with a strengthening of the extent to which policies address the structural drivers. Nonetheless, due to the persistence of implementation barriers at the national level and the relative absence of normative approaches, this dissertation suggests that strategies may fall short of inciting behavioural changes amongst refugees and advocates for a greater focus on creating and raising awareness of accessible alternative economic, protection and educational options to reduce reliance on child marriage.