Investigating Mechanisms Between Child Marriage, Intimate Partner Violence, and Psychological Distress in Malawi and Uganda: An Application of Generalized Structural Equation Models

One in five women aged 20–24 years are first married before adulthood. Using the Violence against Children Surveys from Uganda and Malawi, we decomposed the total relationship between child marriage and psychological distress into an indirect relationship via intimate partner violence (IPV) and a direct relationship (above and beyond IPV). In Uganda, delaying marriage during adolescence reduced the probability of IPV and psychological distress in young adulthood; 45% of the total relationship between age at first marriage and psychological distress was mediated through IPV. In contrast, Malawi showed less evidence of direct and indirect relationships, though the total effect approached significance.