Reviewer’ s report
Title: Understanding individual, family and community perspectives on delaying early birth
among adolescent girls: Findings from a formative evaluation in rural Bangladesh
Version: 0Date: 24 Mar 2019
Reviewer: Research Square Reviewer 1
Reviewer's report:
PEER REVIEWER ASSESSMENTS:OBJECTIVE - Full research articles: is there a clear objective that addresses a testable research
question(s) (brief or other article types: is there a clear objective)?Yes - there is a clear objective
DESIGN - Is the current approach (including controls and analysis protocols) appropriate for the
objective?No - there are major issues
EXECUTION - Are the experiments and analyses performed with technical rigor to allow
confidence in the results?No - there are major issues
STATISTICS - Is the use of statistics in the manuscript appropriate?
No - there are issues with the statistics in the study
INTERPRETATION - Is the current interpretation/discussion of the results reasonable and not
overstated?No - there are major issues
OVERALL MANUSCRIPT POTENTIAL - Is the current version of this work technically sound?
If not, can revisions be made to make the work technically sound?No - manuscript has some fundamental flaw(s)
PEER REVIEWER COMMENTS:GENERAL COMMENTS: This paper in the present format can't be published.REQUESTED REVISIONS:
1.The topic is interesting, and given high rate of pregnancy of early married girls in Bangladesh,this seems to be a significant area of social intervention.2.But the paper lacks proper review of relevant literature.3.Again, its sample size is too small: only 21 of the 127 respondents were married adolescent girls
even though the study is basically on them!
4.Given the narrow data base and use of Snowball sampling technique, use of statistical tool
(Dedoose software) to analyse finding does not make sense. Alternately, techniques like CaseHistory, Narratives, Focused Groups Discussions or Ethnography could have been used to studythe problem.5.Social and economic backgrounds of members of community and the overall context of thestudy are not explained. It is also necessary to differentiate Northern Bangladesh from other partsto understand the high rate of pregnancy of married adolescent Muslim girls in those areas.6.This paper is full of contradictory statements made by respondents. These are not placed in thecontext of social and cultural systems prevailing in the villages under study.
7.The intervention programs suggested are traditional, and the authors are not aware of the
positive implications of state intervention in certain South Asian countries.8.The paper also requires many minor corrections/editing.
Note: This reviewer report can be downloaded - see attached pdf file.
Are the methods appropriate and well described?
If not, please specify what is required in your comments to the authors.
NoDoes the work include the necessary controls?
If not, please specify which controls are required in your comments to the authors.
No
Are the conclusions drawn adequately supported by the data shown?
If not, please explain in your comments to the authors.
NoAre you able to assess any statistics in the manuscript or would you recommend an
additional statistical review?If an additional statistical review is recommended, please specify what aspects require furtherassessment in your comments to the editors.
I am able to assess the statisticsQuality of written English
Please indicate the quality of language in the manuscript:
Needs some language corrections before being publishedDeclaration of competing interests
Please complete a declaration of competing interests, considering the following questions:
1. Have you in the past five years received reimbursements, fees, funding, or salary from an
organisation that may in any way gain or lose financially from the publication of thismanuscript, either now or in the future?
2. Do you hold any stocks or shares in an organisation that may in any way gain or lose
financially from the publication of this manuscript, either now or in the future?
3. Do you hold or are you currently applying for any patents relating to the content of the
manuscript?
4. Have you received reimbursements, fees, funding, or salary from an organization that holds
or has applied for patents relating to the content of the manuscript?
5. Do you have any other financial competing interests?6. Do you have any non-financial competing interests in relation to this paper?
If you can answer no to all of the above, write 'I declare that I have no competing interests' below.
If your reply is yes to any, please give details below.
This reviewer has been recruited by a partner organization, Research Square. Reviewers with
declared or apparent competing interests are not utilized for these reviews. This reviewer hasagreed to publication of their comments online under a Creative Commons Attribution Licenseattributed to Research Square and was paid a small honorarium for completing the review within aspecified timeframe. Honoraria for reviews such as this are paid regardless of the reviewerrecommendation.
I agree to the open peer review policy of the journal. I understand that my name will be included
on my report to the authors and, if the manuscript is accepted for publication, my named reportincluding any attachments I upload will be posted on the website along with the authors'responses. I agree for my report to be made available under an Open Access Creative CommonsCC-BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). I understand that any commentswhich I do not wish to be included in my named report can be included as confidential commentsto the editors, which will not be published.
I agree to the open peer review policy of the journal