Perceptions of people towards childlessness in marriage. Negative effects of childlessness on couples and their coping mechanisms (PDF)

Doctoral Thesis / Dissertation from the year 2022 in the subject Psychology - Social Psychology, University Of Abuja (Social Science), course: Social Studies, language: English, abstract: Infertility is one public health issue with major social and psychological implications. It is well acknowledged that infertility in married couples represents a serious life crisis that jeopardizes the stability of individuals and relationships. Apart from the magnitude of the problem, women have received the majority of the attention when it comes to infertility care, with men receiving less attention. Nonetheless, this study evaluates the perceptions of people towards childlessness in marriages.

However, data collection was accomplished through the use of a questionnaire. A simple random sampling technique was used for the study. The study has a sample size of 347. SPSS software was used to analyze the gathered data. The study's conclusions highlighted a number of negative effects of childlessness, including as labelling, abuse, depression, anxiety, and stigmatization. Other effects included labelling, denial of cultural rights, disrespect from a spouse, and polygamy. Furthermore, 57.0% of the respondents agreed that there was a link between spirituality and not having children, while 34.5% disagreed and 8.5% was unsure.

The study also discovered that childless couples used self-control, positive self-talk, escape/avoidance, and social support as coping strategies. In the end, infertility is a medical condition requiring appropriate treatment. Therefore, this study recommends that the government give top priority to the creation of short-term plans and programmes that aim to set up easily accessible, reasonably priced medical facilities and infertility counselling centres.