How Social, Historical, Cultural, Political And Economic Factors Influence Child-Rearing And Development In The Global South: A Comparative Analysis

Factors Influencing Child Marriages in Bangladesh: A Comparative Study

Global South refers to the regions of Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. It includes the “Third word” and the “Periphery” that symbolize the regions outside the Europe and North America. The use of this phrase “Global South” focuses on the development or cultural differences in the direction of geopolitical relations of power (Dados and Connel, 2012).

Child marriages are one of a biggest topic across the world, this includes any formal or informal union where male or female or anyone of them is under 18 years of age. It is a violation of child rights, which impacted negatively on their physical growth, health, development, and education opportunities (UNICEF, 2018).

According to the 2017 UNICEF report, Bangladesh has a very high rate of child marriage, and its ranking forth in the world with the 59 percent (Reid, 2018). There are 29 percent girls who married before the age of 15 in Bangladesh and 65 percent who married before the age of 18 (HRW, 2015). There are many factors that influences and promote child marriages in terms of economic, historical, cultural, and political.

Child development and child rearing is different in every country and regions as per their country cultures and different factors that include social, historical, cultural, political, and economic. These factors play a vital role in child development and rearing along with relationship in between parent-child. For understanding this study there is ecological system theory of Urie Bronfenbrenner, who is an American psychologist, this theory involves the inherent qualities of a child and his environment interact to influences his growth and development. This theory or practice is based on the Tibetan childrearing and child monks in relation with the other global south countries or region such as China, Japan, Nepal etc. culture and how social, economic, environmental factors influences child development (The Psychology Notes Headquarters, 2013).

In Bangladesh, the economic, social and cultural impact on child marriages includes the fertility, population growth, health, violence, education attainment, decision-making and investment, while historical includes the poverty, insecurity as well as political and the financial issues, all these factors forces to promote the child marriages.

A child is involved simultaneously in many different ecosystems, which starts from his home ecological system then moving outward to the schools system and later on the most extensive system which includes the society and culture. In a child’s life, all these systems are important and equally influence a child life by unavoidably interacting with each other (The Psychology Notes Headquarters, 2013).

The microsystem is an immediate environment after a child’s birth and the smallest system of a child. This includes the daily life of an infant, daycare, and the community environment and people such as parents, teachers, and friends to develop their personal relationships. Microsystem involves the child reactions or response to the people and how they treat them in return (Greenberg, and Kahn, 2011).  This first stage covers the child development at their early stage. If two siblings are experiencing the same microsystem still there is possibilities for them to experience different environment.

Ecological System Theory of Urie Bronfenbrenner and Its Application to Tibetan Childrearing Practices and Child Monks

According to UNICEF, Nigeria is ranking first in the world with 76 percent (Reid, 2018), while child marriage is extensive in West and Central Africa with 42 percent as well as Eastern and Southern Africa with 36 percent (Girls not brides, 2018). These all rates have increased because of their cultural, historical, political and social factors that force them to follow their religious. It also includes the poverty and low income and education rates in Nigeria and Africa that promote most of the child marriages at early age.

The mesosystem involves the interaction with their different relationships or people that he has made at the stage of microsystem, in between home and school, friends, and families. Continuing friendship with their child, inviting their friends at home and spending time with them affect positively on them. However, if it gets opposite to the situation then that could probably affected negatively on child (The Psychology Notes Headquarters, 2013).

Maintaining relationship with parents and other community is not that possible for them so it is less effective for them. While Chinese and Japanese children’s are more focused towards their academic achievements under their parent’s influences (Budden, 2017).

The exosystem includes the indirect reactions of a particular action on children; they are not even directly connected with, still, it influences on their development (The Psychology Notes Headquarters, 2013).

In Japan and Australia people focuses more over their children’s education instead focusing on child marriages, they are more supportive for their children’s development and rearing by providing good knowledge and skills according to UNESCO (O’Neil, 2016).

The macrosystem includes the unfriendly collection of people and the places; it is the largest system which composes the cultural configurations and values for his ideas and beliefs which is also affected from the political and economic factors for keep influencing a child with some important exercises. For example, Tibetan is a different and unique culture in itself, when child keeps getting food from their parents without any efforts, it is easy for them to have it which probably will not make them understand about the value of food, but once they will do the child monks or activity the influence will be different (Pan, Wang, and Li, 2018).

While in Japan as a developed country people are job oriented and teach the same to their children, when it comes on children to earn for their livelihood and maintaining a position in outwards, it effects differently on their macrosystem stage, where they experience a different culture and development from a peace community as their family, friends to professionals and colleagues of their office environment (Budden, 2017).

The last chronosystem includes the influence of change in a child’s life and his environment. That change involves family structure, parent’s service status, address; in addition change in the economic cycle (Walker et al, 2017). In this system child starts making his family by getting married, they are no more dependent on their family or parents. In the context of Tibetan and other regional countries, children’s follow the same what their parents and society and other social, cultural factors influences them to do (Greenfield, and Cocking, 2014). They continue on preserving their country culture, by teaching their own children and contributing in their growth what they have learned from their families and culture.

In the conclusion of the above theory of ecological system, Children in the global south are more cultural oriented because of their economic, social and political and matter of facts that they desire to continue on their cultural teachings accomplished in the new generation as well.

References:

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Greenfield, P.M. and Cocking, R.R. (2014) Cross-cultural roots of minority child development. New York: Psychology Press.

HRW. (2015) Marry Before Your House is Swept Away: Child Marriages in Bangladesh [Online]. Available from: https://www.hrw.org/report/2015/06/09/marry-your-house-swept-away/child-marriage-bangladesh [Accessed: 02/12/2018].

O’Neill, J. (2016) 10 Best Countries for Education Around The World [Online]. Available from: https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/best-countries-education/ [Accessed: 02/12/2018].  

Pan, Y., Wang, X. and Li, L. (2018) Early Childhood Education and Development in China. In International Handbook of Early Childhood Education. USA:Springer, Dordrecht.

Reid, K. (2018) Untying the knot: 10 worst places for child marriage [Online]. Available from: https://www.worldvision.org/child-protection-news-stories/10-worst-places-child-marriage [Accessed: 02/12/2018].

Sang, K. (2018) A Glimpse of Tibetan Monk’s Life [Online]. Available from: https://www.tibettravel.org/tibetan-culture/tibetan-monk.html [Accessed: 29/11/2018].

The Psychology Notes Headquarters. (2013) What is Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory? [Online]. Available from: https://www.psychologynoteshq.com/bronfenbrenner-ecological-theory/ [Accessed: 29/11/2018].

UNICEF. (2018) Child Marriage [Online]. Available from: https://unicef.in/Whatwedo/30/Child-Marriage [Accessed: 02/12/2018].

Walker, S.P., Wachs, T.D., Gardner, J.M., Lozoff, B. Wasserman, G.A., Pollitt, E., Carter, J.A. and International Child Development Steering Group, (2007) Child development: risk factors for adverse outcomes in developing countries. The lancet, 369(9556), pp.145-157.