The Interaction of Early Marriage Internalization and Resistance against It: The Case of Second Generation Afghan Migrant Women in Yazd, Iran

The present paper aims to study the socialization and internalization of early marriage among Afghan migrant women living in Yazd. The study has been conducted through a qualitative approach and grounded theory method. Data were collected among 20 Afghan migrant women living in Yazd through in-depth interviews. Findings show that early marriage occurs in a context where the tradition of early marriage is transmitting from one generation to the next one through social learning, and this phenomenon is made by issues such as generational homogeneity in marriage, and the significant role of mothers in education of children and the values transmission. So that the time and the form of marriages, do not show significant generation difference due to the dominance of traditional-social thoughts and socialization as a factor has also contributed to its stabilization. However, these women, due to their experience of early marriage and the relative dissatisfaction with it, looking for their unattainable desires and demands for their children in an utopian future. Early marriage may gradually change over time as a result of mental and attitudinal shifts, however, social values and past-rooted traditions continue to play an active role in intergenerational reproduction of early marriage.