The problem of this study was to isolate some of the characteristics of tenth-grade girls which may lead to early marriage. The characteristics studied were: sibling rank, influence of a broken home, parents* education and occupations, mental ability, aptitude, scholastic achievement, study habits and attitudes, and personal problems identified by the subjects. A further problem of the study was the effectiveness of each of the characteristics in predicting the marriage of high school girls.

It was the purpose of this study to determine whether the early loss of the father is conducive to injury of personality development of boys and girls, which injury may still be evident in late adolescence, the crucial time in life when educational, vocational and other important decisions are being made.