Transitions to adulthood in men and women in rural Malawi in the 21st century using sequence analysis: some evidence for delay

There is global evidence that ‘social adulthood’ may be occurring later, which may have impacts on individuals and communities. This analysis used unusually detailed, prospectively collected data from the Karonga Health and Demographic Surveillance Site in rural Malawi between 2004-2017, conducting sequence analyses to describe transitions to adulthood for both men and women and assess whether their timing is changing. Many participants followed a fairly traditional transition to adulthood, leaving school, marrying and having children all within a short time period, however there were a sizable group experiencing later marriage. These seem to be split into those (mostly men) who received very little education and have a long delay between school-leaving and marrying, and those who are able to access more education. For men, the change over time seems mostly related to access to secondary education rather than timing of marriage. For women, change over time is related to increased access to secondary education and timing of marriage.