Male behaviours towards unplanned pregnancy: experiences of Brazilian low‐income women

Abstract

Lone women are responsible for a quarter of Brazilian families. The unplanned pregnancy, a strong reality for many young poor women in this country, provokes a strong impact on physical, emotional, socio-economic and family dimensions. Do personal characteristics determine the behaviours of males towards unplanned pregnancy? Do the associations between the couple's bond and male behaviours influence attitudes towards unplanned pregnancy? This descriptive study was carried out in a low-income community in the City of São Paulo, Brazil. A structured form was composed to obtain data from 100 women who have lived out the unplanned pregnancy experience. Personal characteristics do not appear to determine male behaviours towards unplanned pregnancy. There was a statistically significant difference among men in different types of bonding relationship (married, cohabiting, dating, without bonding) with regard to the following behaviours: attention given during pregnancy; changes to the type of bond between partners; civil registration of the child by the father; financial support provided by the father and contact with the child. Bonding and correlated topics are essential in sexual and reproductive healthcare education and promotion. Population sampling was statistically calculated based on community demographic data and the conclusions refer to the estimated parameters of men's behaviours according to women's experiences.