Age at marriage and first birth interval: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Age at marriage is one of the proximate determinants of fertility. Women with early age at marriage experiences early motherhood, associated with high fertility, low education, and rural residence accompanied with poverty. In the present study, an attempt has been made to evaluate age at marriage and factors affecting it and its effect on first birth interval (FBI) using systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODOLOGY: Inclusion criteria were availability of full- and free-text articles, published in English language, and current married age of mother being 13 years and above. PubMed and Google search was used for systematic review for the study. Meta-analysis was carried out using Microsoft Excel 2013. RESULTS: Pooled-weighted average age at marriage was 19.96 years (with 4.26 standard error). The age at marriage in China was highest (21.56 years). Literacy and occupation of women had significant effect on age at marriage. Urbanization could not affect significantly on age at marriage. Furthermore, FBI has been modified by age at marriage.