Jeganathan Geetha, Srinivasan Sampath Kumar, Ramasamy Senthilkumar, Govindharaj Pitchaimani
Gramalaya NGO, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India.
Department of Sociology & Population Studies, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
BMC Res Notes. 2024 Dec 30;17(1):395. doi: 10.1186/s13104-024-07054-6.
Fertility decision-making is an important factor affecting the Total Fertility Rate. Good communication between partners encourages shared decision-making and equal participation. Women's decision-making plays an important role in determining their reproductive health and fertility behaviour. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the decision-making of rural women on fertility.
A household survey was conducted by using a multi-stage sample with 407 married women aged 18-45 years, having at least one child and living in Tiruchirappalli District, Tamil Nadu were recruited for this study. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data about the demographic status and decision-making related to fertility.
Of the 407 participants, 70% were aged between 26 and 40 years, 73% were working as farmers and labourers and 77% were living in nuclear families. In decision-making on the usage of contraception, 25%, 27% and 27% of their decision were taken by themselves, their spouse, and both the participants and their spouse respectively. In spacing of childbirth, 53% took decisions concurrently with their husband. Among the participants, 40%, of their intake of food in the pre-and post-natal period was decided by them and 44% of women preferred the institutional delivery for childbirth by themselves.
The study reveals that women tend to prefer sharing and involving their spouses in making decisions on fertility-related issues. Additionally, they exhibit greater support during the pre- and post-natal periods for women.
生育决策是影响总和生育率的一个重要因素。伴侣之间良好的沟通有助于共同决策和平等参与。女性的决策在决定其生殖健康和生育行为方面起着重要作用。因此，本研究旨在评估农村女性在生育方面的决策情况。
采用多阶段抽样进行家庭调查，招募了407名年龄在18至45岁之间、至少育有一个子女且居住在泰米尔纳德邦蒂鲁吉拉伯利区的已婚女性参与本研究。使用半结构化问卷收集有关人口统计学状况和生育相关决策的数据。
在407名参与者中，70%的年龄在26至40岁之间，73%从事农民和劳工工作，77%生活在核心家庭中。在避孕措施使用的决策方面，分别有25%、27%和27%的决策由她们自己、配偶以及双方共同做出。在生育间隔方面，53%的人与丈夫共同做出决策。在参与者中，她们在产前和产后的饮食摄入有40%由自己决定，44%的女性自己更倾向于在医疗机构分娩。
该研究表明，女性倾向于在生育相关问题的决策上与配偶分享并让其参与。此外，她们在产前和产后对女性表现出更大的支持。
