Reproductive Literacy Research Articles

Sexual and reproductive health literacy and its associated factors among adolescents in Harar town public high schools, Harari, Ethiopia, 2023: a multicenter cross-sectional study.

In sub-Saharan African countries, including Ethiopia, the utilization of sexual and reproductive health information during adolescence is considered to be low. The aim of this study was to assess the level of sexual and reproductive health literacy among adolescents in Ethiopia as well as the factors associated with sexual and reproductive health literacy in this population. An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was employed. Systematic sampling methods were used to select 909 study participants. A validated scale was used, consisting of 31 questions with a 5-point Likert scale. A total score was computed, ranging from 31 (minimum score) to 155 (maximum score), which was finally categorized into limited and adequate sexual and reproductive health literacy. A multivariate linear regression model was fitted to determine the factors influencing adolescents' sexual and reproductive health literacy. The percentage of adolescents with slightly adequate and excellent sexual and reproductive health literacy was 38.9% and 6.3%, respectively. On the other hand, 677 (74.5%) participants overall had limited sexual and reproductive literacy. Healthcare workers and reading books were the preferred sources of sexual and reproductive health information that were associated with higher sexual and reproductive health literacy by 6.42 (95% CI 1.62-11.22) and 6.57 (95% CI 1.62-11.22), respectively. Adolescents' ability to pay for their healthcare was associated with better sexual and reproductive health literacy by 13.76 times (95% CI 8.21-19.32). More than three-quarters of the adolescents had limited sexual and reproductive health literacy. Sources of sexual and reproductive health information, including healthcare workers, books, and the Internet, were significantly associated with adolescents' sexual and reproductive health literacy. Hence, primary stakeholders need to incorporate sexual and reproductive health into the curriculum at high schools.

Strengthening Digital Communication in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic and its Implementation in Indonesian Society

In a pandemic situation since March 2020, everyone has to do all activities at home or stay at home, starting from work, study, literacy, and others. In fact, mobility is now increasingly limited, and this makes people unable to travel arbitrarily. This has an impact on the way people live, such as with the economy, health, and education. Now that technology is here to make it easier for Indonesian people to be literate, we don't need to go out to go to the offline library, just sit back and relax at home. In Indonesia, digital literacy was initiated by the Ministry of Education and Culture under Muhadjir Effendy in 2017 to counter hoaxes, but digital literacy has begun to be felt by the benefits since the pandemic rocked the world. But there are still those who are ignorant or don't even know what to pay attention to in digital literacy. This paper would like to discuss about how to strengthen digital communication in the era of the covid 19 pandemic and its implementation in Indonesian society. The purpose of this study is to describe the strengthening of digital literacy, its development, and its implementation in Indonesian society. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative with a literature study approach. The results of the study show that there are various elements in digital literacy, namely cultural, cognitive, constructive, communicative, confident, creative, critical, and responsible. In addition, through photo-visual literacy, reproductive literacy, branched literacy, information literacy, emotional social literacy, and real-time thinking literacy. Keywords: pandemic, digital literacy, millennial generation, challenges, stay at home.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention using a cross-sectoral couple-based intervention: results from a cluster randomised control trial in Ibadan, Nigeria

IntroductionIntimate partner violence (IPV) is the most common form of violence women experience globally. Economic empowerment interventions have been implemented across countries to prevent and address IPV, with mixed results....

Negotiating Language in Providing Sexual and Reproductive Health Care to Refugees From Burma: Experiences of Service Providers From Australia

We explore the complexities of language used in providing sexual and reproductive health care to Burma-born refugees in Australia. Twenty-nine providers of refugee services were interviewed to examine these conversational challenges. In the broader study, we found six major themes in relation to effective communication; here we focus on the “Negotiating language and vocabulary” theme, which has four subthemes: (a) different system of reproductive health vocabulary, (b) use of euphemism and metaphors, (c) unfamiliarity with Western concepts of health, and (d) recommendations to improve conversations. Incorporating linguistic nuances (analogies, metaphors, similes) in reproductive literacy interventions could facilitate more purposeful sexual health discussions.

Pengembangan Literasi Digital untuk Meningkatkan Kemampuan Membaca

<p><em>The rapid development of technology today should be the main key in efforts to develop students' abilities and skills in the field of education and the learning process in dealing with the world of technology and information. The support and role of education is expected to increase the nation's competitiveness in the midst of global competition. The openness of information technology should be balanced with the progress of good reading literacy, but in Indonesia in particular, reading literacy skills for children are still at the bottom. Therefore, the development of digital literacy is expected to be a benchmark and a supporting factor in the development of student knowledge that can be accessed by digital media around the environment such as mobile phones, computers, laptops, etc. This article proposes a new conceptual framework for the concept of digital literacy, combining five types of literacy: (a) photovisual literacy; (b) reproductive literacy; (c) information literacy; (d) branched literacy; and (e) socio-emotional literacy that can support knowledge development.</em></p>

People of the book, women of the body

Jews have often been referred to as ‘People of the book.’ This is because books, specifically those that contain rabbinic legal discourse, are understood to be authoritative guides for Jewish life, and those who have achieved mastery in the content of the books are considered authorities. Although ‘people of the book’ is often used to refer to all Jews, book culture has been almost entirely constructed by men, particularly among ultra-Orthodox Jews. This article offers a different framework, one which sees women’s religious authority growing out of embodied experiences. Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) women challenge the dominant paradigm for religious authority by insisting that their pregnant bodies replace books and rabbis. While a woman’s body might be seen as an impediment to her religious authority, I argue that women become capable of exercising religious authority through their embodied experiences of bearing children. During my two years of ethnographic research with Haredi women in Jerusalem, I found that after giving birth to two or three children, Haredi women felt authorized to make decisions about their pregnancies without consulting a rabbi. After a woman has two or three children, she develops what I refer to as ‘reproductive literacy,’ meaning she knows how to use her embodied reproductive experiences as knowledge, expertise, and thus authority over reproduction. Through a close reading of pregnancy advice books and an analysis of how Haredi women use these books, I show that how Haredi women embody authority to make decisions about the maintenance and continuation of Haredi life.

Association between Intimate Partner Violence, Knowledge and Use of Contraception in Africa: Comparative Analysis across Five African Regions.

Background or Objectives:Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is common globally, and is associated with several adverse consequences. This study provides a comparative analysis of potential regional differences in the association between IPV and knowledge and use of contraceptives within Africa.Methods:A multi-country cross-sectional study was conducted using data on women of reproductive age 15-49 years from the Demographic and Health Surveys covering five African regions. Exposure and outcome variables were IPV and reproductive literacy (comprising modern contraception knowledge and contraception usage) respectively. We used survey log-binomial regression models to generate prevalence ratios that estimated the association between IPV versus knowledge and usage of modern contraception.Results:Overall IPV prevalence in Africa was 30.8% with notable regional differences. Demographic, socioeconomic, and reproductive history markers of IPV were more pronounced in younger women, rural residents, women of low socioeconomic status and those with copious knowledge but poor usage of modern contraception. The level of knowledge of contraception was 84% greater among African women who were victims of IPV compared to their counterparts who were not victims of IPV (p < 0.0001). IPV was not associated with actual usage of modern contraception (p = 0.21).Conclusion And Global Health Implications:IPV against women in Africa may incentivize knowledge seeking of modern contraception as protective mechanisms. Regional variations notwithstanding, understanding the existing and new characteristics predictive of IPV may inform policy development, resource allocation and prevention of IPV globally.

Influence of Sexual and Reproductive Health Literacy on Single and Recurrent Adolescent Pregnancy in Latin America.

Latin America ranks second in adolescent birth rate globally. Teenage pregnancy often leads to adverse outcomes, affecting the health of the mother and the child in various ways. We examined the association between sexual and reproductive literacy and teenage pregnancy in Latin America. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, INTERVENTIONS, AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We analyzed Demographic and Health Survey data for Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Peru, and Guatemala. Adolescents were asked about their sexual and reproductive health and their experiences of teenage pregnancy. We measured single and recurrent pregnancy risks according to various classes of sexual and reproductive health literacy using prevalence ratios and adjusted for covariates. We estimated the burden of "preventable" single and recurrent teen pregnancy at various effectiveness levels of sexual and reproductive health literacy interventions. The prevalence of teenage pregnancy for all 5 countries was 19.1%. A positive dose-response relationship was observed between sexual and reproductive health illiteracy and teenage pregnancy; an adolescent who reported complete sexual and reproductive health illiteracy showed 44% increased prevalence of experiencing pregnancy compared with an adolescent who reported accurate sexual and reproductive health literacy. Effective sexual and reproductive health interventions in all 5 countries was associated with 56,006 fewer single and 147,771 fewer recurrent teenage pregnancies. Sexual and reproductive health illiteracy is a risk factor for teenage pregnancy. Complete sexual and reproductive health literacy is associated with substantial reduction in teenage pregnancy in Latin America. Comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education and counseling could potentially avert a significant number of teenage pregnancies in these settings.

The use of fertility awareness methods (FAM) among young adult Latina and black women: what do they know and how well do they use it? Use of FAM among Latina and black women in the United States

ObjectivesAlthough a sizeable percentage of minority women use fertility awareness methods (FAM), little is known about their use in the United States. We sought to fill this gap by examining FAM use among Latina and black women — groups that have high rates of unintended childbearing and FAM use — focusing on knowledge, sources of information and accuracy of use. Unlike other methods, accurate use of FAM requires relatively high levels of knowledge. Study DesignIn-depth, semistructured interviews were conducted with 58 Latina and black women who were current or past users of FAM. Participants were recruited through local clinics and ads posted in neighborhoods and local Web sites. A purposive sample design was used to ensure that the sample included individuals with characteristics associated with FAM use. An inductive approach was used in the data analysis. ResultsWomen learned about FAM from family, professionals and the Internet. In general, what they learned fell into one of two levels of information — basic or in-depth — and many women possessed moderate to low levels of knowledge. By decomposing accuracy of use into its components, we find that it is driven largely by knowledge. While the vast majority of women were abstaining from unprotected sex during what they believed to be their fertile window, only 34 of the 58 participants accurately identified their fertile period. ConclusionsFindings speak to a gap in reproductive literacy that has important implications for FAM users. The gap between behavior and knowledge could help account for high failure rates associated with FAM use.