The Explorer: Journal of Social Sciences

ISSN: 2411-0132, Vol-1, Issue (4):117-120

www.theexplorerpak.org

INFERTILITY: A QUALITATIVE STUDY ON ITS PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECT

Farwah Zulfiqar1, Muhammad Idress2
Department of Anthropology, PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, 2Department of Mathematics
and Statistics, PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi

Corresponding Author:
Farwah Zulfiqar
PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Farwahzulfiqar94@gmail.com
Abstract: The study focused to explore whether infertility affects the life of a woman psychologically or not. In our
cultural contexts it is considered a great deficiency in the lives of a couple. In our society, getting impregnated soon
after the marriage is considered normative. Failing to produce offspring in a couple of years, starts building social
pressure which stresses her psychologically. The research was conducted in Waulah and Dulmial village in Tehsil Choa
Saidan Shah Chakwal. The study was conducted using interview guides as a qualitative tool from a sample of 64 infertile
women having both primary and secondary infertility over a period of 3 weeks. The study concluded that these women
not only bear the social consequences but also their mental health is badly affected. Inability to conceive marks a huge
disaster for her upcoming life. The chief burden of reproductive inability lies with the woman who is victimized as the
sole cause of deficiency.

Key Words: Infertility, Stress, psychological, Burden, Depression, Emotions

INTRODUCTION
In the past few years bio medical and social science
have donated radically to the field of human
reproduction. Infertility in this part of the society is
a label given to women who are incapable to
conceive or are unable to transmit a pregnancy
to full term. The emotional turmoil caused by
infertility is disturbing. Women more or less
constantly experience a huge quantity of emotional
sorrow with barrenness (Pressman 2009). A Barren
woman has to face numerous problems. These
problems include psychological, physical and social.
In infertility sadness is always a common feedback.
Hormonal alteration has an effect on the
sentiments of childless men and women. Anger
enhances when the success is not present at the
closing stages of each month starting the menstrual
phase (Sultan and Tahir 2011). Women are
tortured not only psychically but also mentally.
These things can bring great disaster in their life.
Infertility is a hectic experience and has a significant
impact on couples mental stability. Infertile
women showed significantly high ranks of worry
and sadness, since childlessness leads to communal
stigmatization for barren women. (Kazandi, et al.
2011) If women have no children they become
aggressive. They have high level of hopelessness.
Women who have lack of husbands support also
feel stress.
Infertility seems to have a significant effect on the
psyche such as creation of anxiety and depression.

In addition, the problem increases the duration of

infertility (Pour 2014). Infertility, whether primary
or secondary, affects the couples equally. Infertility
is an experience that hits at the extremely core of a
woman's life. Infertility may be due to a problem
with female partner or male partner. Stress can
prospectively donate to the progress of sadness.
Barrenness has a powerful impact on relationship
and sense of self esteem. Research shows that
globally women shoulder the majority of the
burden of infertility and may be subject to divorce
or abandonment, ostracism, emotional or physical
abuse, and psychological problems, among other
forms of suffering (Dudgeon and Inhorn 2004). If
woman has no child she also has to face many
troubles from society and from in laws that may
affect her psyche. Stress, depression and anxiety
are described as common consequences of
infertility (Deka and Sarma 2010). Females
experience feelings of meaninglessness, isolation,
despair, rejection, helplessness, hopelessness and
irritation because of the disturbing feedback from
her family. Infertility has also been associated to
emotional troubles such as low self-respect,
sadness and anxiety anarchy. Sadness, worry,
mental distress, sexual aggression, domestic
violence and increasing rates of material abuse
influence women to a greater degree than men
across diverse states and diverse locations.

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MATERIALS AND METHODS

The study was conducted in district Chakwal
particularly focusing infertility of women in rural
areas. The locale of the study was Waulah and
Dulmial village. A blend of both quantitative and
qualitative tools was used. The sample consisted of
64 married women. Women who were facing the
issue of infertility were interviewed through a well
structured interview guide consisting of open and
close-ended questions. The data was collected from
two villages using the snow ball sampling (Nonprobability sampling) technique. The data was
collected from Basic Health Unit. The data is
presenting in tabulated form to elaborate the
results of the research and analyze by SPSS using
the test Pearsons correlation.
RESULTS
Table.1
P.E.I.W: Psychological Effects on Infertile Women
I.W.F.L: Infertile Women Feel Loneliness
I.W.M.S: Infertile Woman Has Mental Stress
H0: infertility doesnt affect the mental health of
women
H1: Infertility affects the mental health of women.
Correlations
P.E.I.W I.W.F.L I.W.M.S
P.E.I.W

I.W.F.L

I.W.M.S

-.200

-.087

.114

.493

64

64

64

-.200

-.069

.114

.585

64

64

64

-.087

-.069

.493

.585

64

64

64

According to the results from the above mentioned

table, there is a minor correlation between
(P.E.I.W) psychological effects of infertile women
and (I.W.F.L) infertility in women leads to loneliness
is 0.114, same as the normal correlation between
(P.E.I.W) psychological effects of infertile women
and (I.W.M.S) infertile woman has mental stress is
0.493. In next observation there is normal
correlation between (I.W.F.L) loneliness and mental
stress on an infertile woman that is 0.585. So
hypothesis (h1) statistically accepted.
Table.2
I.P.E.M: Infertility psychologically affects men
I.W.F: Does infertile women frustrated

I.W.V.V: Does infertile woman become a victim of

violence
I.V.T.F: Does infertile become a victim of taunt and
fun
I.P.E.M

I.W.F

I.W.V.V

I.V.T.F

I.P.E.M
1
64
.159
.209
64
-.020
.875
64
-.152
.232
64

I.W.F
.159
.209
64
1
64
.217
.085
64
.062
.627
64

I.W.V.V
-.020
.875
64
.217
.085
64
1
64
.124
.331
64

I.V.T.F
-.152
.232
64
.062
.627
64
.124
.331
64
1
64

Results from table 2, illustrates that there is a minor

correlation between (I.W.F) Infertile womans
frustrations leading to (I.P.E.M) psychologically
affect her counterpart. The result on the second
variable, where (I.P.E.M) infertilitys psychological
effect on men is highly correlated with the infertile
woman resultantly becoming a (I.W.V.V) victim of
violence with a value of .875. Infertility in a way
affects the man psychologically where he becomes
prone to victimizing the infertile woman through
verbal abuse with a normal correlation value of
0.232.
In second variable the results shows that (I.W.F)
infertile womans frustration leads her in being a
(I.W.V.V) victim of violence with a minor positive
Correlation value of .085 where as frustrations in
woman herself makes her more vulnerable to taunt
and sarcasm with the highly significant value of
.627. In results from the third variable illustrates
that there is a moderate relationship between the
verbal abuses (I.V.T.F) leading to physical of the
infertile woman in some instances with the value of
.331. So hypothesis (h1) statistically accepted.
DISCUSSION
The study aimed to explore the psychological
effects of infertility on the life of a rural woman.
These problems may range from the treatment she
gets from her in-laws to her complex degrading
treatment as compared to her fellow fertile
woman. There is a general perception in our society
that children take care of their parents as they grow
old. Another cultural perception that is widely
circulated is that off springs are necessary for the
fulfillment of womanhood. The study reflected that
there is a general consensus of the respondents
that infertility is a harsh reality that is more
prevalent in present era as compared to past.

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Though the advancement in medical science and

technology has rose with a very fast pace, yet the
ratio of infertility has also grown at par. Infertility
involves 10-18% of conjugal couples all above the
world, and around, 72.4 million couples are
predictable to be infertile (Gokler, et al. 2014).
Infertility is not just limited to woman but is also
getting common in men. It was hence found that
there is a raising acceptance among the targeted
population on the prevalence of infertility among
man as well. Though majority of the man do not
accept this reality, yet a large number of
respondents believed that only educated man
admit it. Like other developing countries, in
Pakistan men are not ready to take the blame
because of false belief of husband that there is
nothing wrong with him and if the wife cannot bear
children he has a valid reason to remarry(Rahim
and Majeed 2004). If they accept this it may affect
his self-esteem and majesty. So they always blame
their wives for being physiologically abnormal. 90%
of the respondents, who were infertile women
believed that they are psychologically different
from those women who have children since a lot of
their time and energies are spend on thinking and
planning about children. When they get in contact
the children of their siblings they suffered
emotionally and the very wish often makes them
envious of them. Infertile women are anxious
regarding their condition and accounted being
sorrowful or are sad. They account bitterness of
heart and can befall suicidal because of their
infertility dilemma (Nieuwenhuis, et al, 2009).
Women also told this led them develop an
inferiority complex because of the very deficiency.
It was also reported that worsening of this
condition led them to think of cessation of their life.
Infertile woman informed that many of them want
to stay socially secluded it was indicated by their
avoidance to different functions and festivals that
held in their family and friends circle. The reason
being sarcasm, taunt and questioning regarding
infertility. They avoid unnecessary interrogative
style of the elderly woman which makes them feels
embraced. 60% women become victim of taunt and
fun Its identified that level of worry and loneliness
is privileged between infertile women who are
usually more depressingly pretentious than their
husbands (Gokler, et al. 2014). 48% women
informed of this kind of loneliness that is either
because of social seclusion by the family or
avoidance of their own par. 62% infertile women
are aggressive. They become stubborn and with the
passage of time their tone becomes harsh.

In extreme cases infertility, becomes an excuse for

maltreatment with woman and the instances
reported such woman being a victim. Violence
restrains diverse sorts not only psychically but also
mentally. The respondents said that now physical
violence has been swapped by physical
violence.75% woman respondents remain in mental
stress. Women become the victims of verbal and
physical abuse and sometime have to face a divorce
or the husband may bring a second wife or send the
first wife to her parent's home(Khan, et al. 2014).
Divorce is considered as an ultimate refuge by the
spouse of infertile woman if she refuses to accept
and allow him to remarry. Significance of a marital
life is marked by a lot of woman as child bearing.
They said whether they do endogamy or exogamy
their husband and mother in laws demands child
for the continuation of their race. In numerous
cultures bearing children are esteemed as the core
purpose in life. In these conditions fosterage and
adoption will not supernumerary actual
motherhood and are only realized as temporary
results to childlessness (Aseffa 2011). Adoption is a
rare phenomena in our culture, it is only accepted if
the adopted kid belongs to the immediate family
from either of the couples siblings preferably from
the mans family. Another hindrance in adoption is
the religious binding as well since the adulthood of
the frosted child is marked by the issue of mehram
and namehram for either of the parents. Hence
51% women believed that infertility in a way affects
the man mentally where as 37% of the women said
that they are not affected because of the presence
of the remarry as a counter option given by the
religion. Where a couple is infertile, yet belong to a
well of family the issue of inheritance could only be
solved by remarrying and having kid another
woman, since adoption does not religiously or
legally let the forester child be heir to the family
property hence alternative marriage is considered
as a coping mechanism of infertility.
Fertility is dealt medicinal treatment. Where as in
the case of rural woman the preferred mode of
treatment is herbal and shamanistic the woman
reported that often these practitioners are illiterate
yet tactful enough to trap these innocent woman
together many and gold in the name of providing
them with rare herbs and offer them amulets. It is
surprising that many women who are educated and
belong to middle class families too fall victims to
these unqualified people who stuff herbs and
concoctions of various substances (Ahmad 1998).
Maltreatment at the par of these practitioners may

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be as deserters as the loose of wealth, property and

in rare cases may even laid to physical abuse.
CONCLUSION
Infertility maybe a consequence of multiple
physiological disorders at birth puberty adulthood
and can even be genetic yet is not handled in terms
of physiological treatment. Though more chances of
this deficiencies lies with the woman, yet a disorder
on the mans par cannot b ignored. The study
reveals that no matter the disorder lies with any of
the partner; it is the woman who usually faces the
consequences in term of emotional, psychological
and social complexities. It was found that the
psychological effects of infertility ranges from
aggression inferiority complex depression, anxiety
to social exclusion which may lead her victim of
inferiority complex cool heartedness, loneliness and
even develop a suicidal behavior. The very
deficiency presented in this paper reflects this
dilemma that blaming the victim is a cultural norm
no matter who actually is responsible for the issue.
Infertility ones diagnosed is conceders as a tragedy
in the life of that woman which will latter
jeopardize events in her life and will decide her fate
and status in the eyes of her family and the society.
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2015 The Explorer Journal of Social Sciences-Pakistan

Gokler, Mehmet Enes, Alaettin Unsal, and Dodem

Arslantas
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