The Prevalence & Determinants of Polygamy Among Men in Pakistan: Findings Based on the Demographic & Health Survey 2017-2018

Background: Polygamy stays one of the key themes in a different social order. It is through social practices, convictions and the people’s decisions that individuals choose to be focused on polygamy ways of life. Various factors contribute to the polygamy issue, many studies have been done on this theme by various researchers around the world. Objective: To highlight the prevalence and associated factors of polygamous marriages among men in Pakistan. Methods: The current study analyzes the secondary data of PDHS (Pakistan Demographic & Health Survey). This survey was done in Pakistan from 22-November-2017 to 30-April-2018 in collaboration with USAID (United State Agency for International Development), ICF (International Coach Federation), and NIPS (National the Institute of Population Studies). The study selected cases of 3145 men, which were married once or more than once and other factors from obtained data to find any association among different factors. Software SPSS version 22 was used for data analysis. Logistic regression was applied to see the associated risk factors. Results: Data were retrieved from 3145 men but a complete analysis was done on 3070 men (remaining were excluded due to missing data issues). The average age among men was 32 ± 8.6 years. Majority belonged to rural area (n=55.5%), with high standard education (n=55.4%), high wealth status (n=55.6%), and desire for more children (n=1636, 53. 3%). Among participants child mortality issues were reported in (n=1602, 52.2%) and had their workplace close to home (n=1656, 53.9%). Out of 3070, 51.8% were polygamous. On multivariate analysis, the factors age, residence, education, wealth, desire for more children, child mortality issue and work status were found to be independent predictors of polygamy. As we were studying polygamy determinants, work away from home, the desire for more children, wealth status and child mortality were found significant. Conclusion: Using the PDHS data, we have found that the prevalence of polygamy was 51.8%. However, different socio-demographic factors affecting it showed significance like wealth index, husband work away & husband desire for more children positively contributing polygamous marriages in Pakistani society.