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Reproductive Health-Sage Pre-Print.doc (108 kB)
A PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF RURAL WOMEN'S CHILDBIRTH PREFERENCES
preprint
posted on 2020-07-07, 18:06 authored by Aneela Sultana, Mahwish ZeeshanMahwish Zeeshan, Sohima AnzakWomen’s
agency and reproductive control have direct bearing on the outcome of their
pregnancy as well as their future childbearing experiences. The present study
is mainly concerned with the process of knowledge construction with regards to
decision-making, in the context of childbirth planning. The study drew on
cultural discourses to understand the societal and familial context which
reinforces traditional home birthing. The study used anthropological approach
and mainly relied on in-depth and narrative interviews that were conducted with
60 married women of childbearing age who went through the process of
childbirth. Phenomenological ethnography is the methodology that used in-depth
face to face interviews to collect narratives of experiential knowledge of the
pregnancies and agency. Field findings
indicate that significant determinants for these childbearing women included
the desire for a natural childbirth experience, apprehensions regarding
obstetric interventions by medical doctors, provision of emotional support,
comfort and assistance provided by female relatives and traditional birth
attendants and also the influence of their husbands who prefer their partners
giving birth at home. In addition, another prominent finding of this study is
the role of authoritative knowledge and shared experiences of older women that
may deprive many young women from accessing maternal care survives at
hospitals. The study concludes to enable rural women to make well informed
decisions about their babies and bodies to improve the utilization of
reproductive health care services in Pakistan.
Funding
none
History
Declaration of conflicts of interest
noneCorresponding author email
mahwish.zeeshan@uaar.edu.pkLead author country
- Pakistan
Lead author job role
- Higher Education Researcher
Lead author institution
Quaid-e-Azam University, IslamabadHuman Participants
- Yes
Ethics statement
The study is extracted out of a doctoral research which was conducted after taking consent of the participants.Comments
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