Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Neuroscience, Neurology, and Psychiatry 2025 (ICONAP 2025)

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The Burden of Tradition: A Case Report of the Impact of Social Pressure on Mental Health in Unmarried Women in Minangkabau Society

Authors
Yelsi Ariesta Fitri1, Mustafa M. Amin1, *
1Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, 20155, Sumatera Utara, Indonesia
*Corresponding author. Email: mustafa.mahmud@usu.ac.id
Corresponding Author
Mustafa M. Amin
Available Online 25 December 2025.
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6463-966-7_15How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Minangkabau society; social pressure; unmarried women; mental health
Abstract

Minangkabau society is known for its matrilineal system that places marriage as a core value in a woman’s life. Unmarried women often face intense social pressures, both from family and the surrounding community, who value marriage as the ultimate achievement in a woman’s life. This social pressure can affect the mental health of unmarried women, causing psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression and social isolation. A 27-year-old woman felt depressed due to frequent questions from her family and neighbourhood about her unmarried status. She experienced anxiety when attending family events, felt socially inadequate, and began to avoid social gatherings. She also reported feelings of worthlessness and difficulty sleeping due to stress and overthinking. This case highlights the negative impact of social pressure on unmarried women in Minangkabau society. Cultural expectations of marriage contribute to significant psychological distress, and awareness raising and better support systems are needed.

Copyright
© 2025 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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Volume Title
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Neuroscience, Neurology, and Psychiatry 2025 (ICONAP 2025)
Series
Advances in Health Sciences Research
Publication Date
25 December 2025
ISBN
978-94-6463-966-7
ISSN
2468-5739
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6463-966-7_15How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2025 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - CONF
AU  - Yelsi Ariesta Fitri
AU  - Mustafa M. Amin
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/25
TI  - The Burden of Tradition: A Case Report of the Impact of Social Pressure on Mental Health in Unmarried Women in Minangkabau Society
BT  - Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Neuroscience, Neurology, and Psychiatry 2025 (ICONAP 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 92
EP  - 99
SN  - 2468-5739
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-966-7_15
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-966-7_15
ID  - Fitri2025
ER  -