Reported Age at Marriage and Its Sociodemographic Correlates among Married Women in Torbat Heydarieh County, Northeastern Iran
A Cross-Sectional Study of Sociodemographic Correlates and Reporting Patterns
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1000/q364p268คำสำคัญ:
reported age at marriage; women; education; employment; sociodemographic factors; Iranบทคัดย่อ
The timing of marriage is a critical demographic and life-course transition linked to family formation and reproductive trajectories. Its correlates vary significantly across different social and cultural settings. To describe the reported age at marriage and examine its unadjusted associations with educational level, occupational status, and number of children among married women in Torbat Heydarieh County, northeastern Iran.In this cross-sectional study conducted in 2026, 405 married women aged 15–49 years were recruited through multistage random sampling. Sociodemographic data were collected using a researcher-developed questionnaire, and the reported age at marriage was recorded via an open-ended question. Data were analyzed in IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 20) using descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Fisher’s LSD post hoc tests, and Pearson’s correlation. No multivariable adjustment was performed. Valid data on the reported age at marriage were available for 391 participants (96.5%). The mean reported age at marriage was 21.93 years (SD=5.18; median = 21). It differed significantly by educational level (F=20.18,p<.001) and occupational status (F=10.22,p<.001). Women with a university education reported a higher mean age at marriage (23.36±4.29 years) compared to those with less than a high school education (19.47±4.67) or a diploma (20.78±6.09). Women employed outside the home reported a higher mean age at marriage than housewives (23.22±4.02 vs. 20.90±5.77years; p<.001). The mean also differed across categories of the number of children (F=13.75,p<.001), ranging from 24.39±4.24years among women with no children to 19.13±3.66among those with three or more. The reported age at marriage was negatively correlated with the number of children (r=-.301,p<.001; n=389). In this single-county sample, the reported age at marriage varied significantly across educational and occupational groups and was inversely correlated with the number of children. Given the cross-sectional design and the absence of multivariable adjustment, these findings describe unadjusted associations and do not imply causal relationships.
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