Last updated September 2009
Authors:
Kathleen Beegle; Berk Özler; Michelle Poulin
Abstract:
The goal of this research project is to collect innovative
longitudinal data on a sample of young adults in Malawi to understand
the links between non-marital relations and sexual experiences,
transitions into marriage, socio-economic status (both prior to and
after marriage), and the spread of HIV/AIDS. By following a cohort of
young, initially never-married adults, the project seeks to understand
the socio-economic and other conditions that precipitate marriage,
including teenage pregnancies and early marriages. As we continue the
study as individuals marry, we can then explore the fertility outcomes
and socio-economic consequences associated with marriage, including
incidence of HIV/AIDS, and the variation in outcome by the
characteristics of marriages. Specifically, the study follows 1,185
unmarried women and men in the Salima district in Malawi. The panel
started in summer 2007. To date, 3 rounds of data have been collected.
The respondents will be interviewed for at least 3 years, continuing to
collect detailed socio-economic information, sexual partnering
information, and HIV status of respondents and their new spouses.
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