Digital Matrimonial Markets, Structural Mismatches, and Psychological Distress Among Never-Married Pakistanis Aged 25–45: A Mixed-Methods Test of the Mismatch Triad Model (Study Protocol v1.0)

This is the complete study protocol (Version 1.0) for a mixed-methods research project on delayed marriage in Pakistan (ages 25-45). The study introduces and empirically tests the Mismatch Triad Model – a novel composite framework comprising age mismatch, financial mismatch, and expectation mismatch. The research employs an anonymous online survey (target N = 500) with a bilingual (English/Urdu) instrument, semi-structured interviews (n = 30), and a proposed AI-based methodological framework for fraud detection and distress prediction. This upload contains: - The complete manuscript draft with Abstract, Introduction, Literature Review, and Methodology - The research questions (RQ1-RQ6) - All tables and figures as described - The proposed NMFA policy framework - The six digital matrimonial fraud factor taxonomy - Complete references in APA 7th edition Data collection is ongoing. IRB approval is pending. Future versions (v2.0) will include completed Results and Discussion after data collection. Target journal: BMC Public Health (Q1, Open Access). Author: Asma Sehrish, M.Sc. Psychology, Independent Researcher, Pakistan.