Women's Desire Research Articles

Sexual Function and Satisfaction in Couples with Infertility: A Closer Look at the Role of Personal and Relational Characteristics

BackgroundResearch to date suggests that couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) are at a high risk of experiencing sexual difficulties. AimThis dyadic cross-sectional study aimed to provide a better understanding of the infertility-specific personal (ie, emotional, mind-body) and relational stressors associated with the sexual desire, orgasm, arousal, and sexual satisfaction of infertile couples seeking ART. MethodsThe sample included 185 mixed-sex infertile couples seeking ART. Participants completed online the Fertility Quality of Life tool and either the Female Sexual Function Index or the International Index of Erectile Function. Data were analyzed using path analyses based on the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. OutcomesIndividuals’ own and their partners’ sexual function (desire, orgasm, arousal domains) and sexual satisfaction. ResultsFor men and women, infertility-related emotional stressors were associated with their own and their partner's lower sexual desire. For women, experiencing greater infertility-related emotional stressors was also associated with their partner's lower sexual satisfaction. While experiencing greater infertility-related mind-body stressors was not associated with men and women's own sexual desire, arousal, orgasm, and satisfaction, for women, it was associated with their partner's lower sexual arousal. Lastly, for men and women, infertility-related relational stressors were associated with their own lower sexual arousal, as well as with their own and their partner's lower sexual satisfaction. For women, experiencing greater relational stressors was also associated with their own lower sexual desire and orgasm. Clinical ImplicationsInterventions addressing the emotional, mind-body, and relational spheres of infertile couples seeking ART may help facilitate improvements in sexual function and satisfaction and better serve their needs. Strengths & LimitationsThis study included a large sample of couples. Our sample was heterogeneous with regards to couples’ cause of infertility and treatment stage. The use of an infertility-related measure allowed us to better capture personal and relational stressors specific to couples seeking ART. Given the cross-sectional design of our study, causality between infertility-related stressors and sexual function and satisfaction cannot be inferred. Our sample included predominantly White, mixed-sex individuals with a high level of education, which may reduce the generalizability of our findings. ConclusionCouples’ subjective experience of infertility and treatment (personal and relational stressors) seems to be strongly associated with their sexual health, allowing us to identify potential targets of intervention with couples seeking ART.S.E. Amiri, A Brassard, N.O. Rosen, et al. Sexual Function and Satisfaction in Couples with Infertility: A Closer Look at the Role of Personal and Relational Characteristics. J Sex Med 2021;18:1984–1997.

The role of family networks and social capital on women's fertility intentions in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

AbstractFamily solidarities remain strong in African societies. In Ouagadougou, transfers within extended family networks provide an omnipresent means for coping with life's difficulties, and the desired number of children remains relatively high. The role of family networks in maintaining high fertility is rarely studied however for lack of data in conventional demographic surveys. This study uses original retrospective data and logistic regression methods to explore the role of the extended family's social capital in shaping women's desire for children in Ouagadougou. Results show that women belong to three types of family networks: (1) women who belong to large family networks on both her own and her husband's side and who maintain a moderate number of close relations with their own relatives; (2) women who also belong to large family networks on both their and their husband's sides but who maintain a greater number of close relations with their own blood relatives; (3) unmarried women with relatives only on their side and numerous close relations with their family. Support for children's schooling comes more often from women's relatives in networks type 2 and 3, and from husbands' relatives in network type 1. Support for children's schooling increases with the level of economic resources in family networks (proxied by the presence of a public employee), in all network types. Women in type 2 networks (centered on women's relatives) are more likely to want additional children compared to women in type 1 networks (centered on their husband's relatives), after controlling for economic resources in networks. This result suggests that practical support provided by family members could play a role, on top of economic support, in encouraging high fertility in Ouagadougou.

Women's education and desire for additional children in Vietnam: regional differences and the role of son preference.

This paper investigates the relationship between women's education and desire for additional children across the six economic regions of Vietnam. The study employed data from the nationally representative Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2014. Probit regression results showed that for women with one child, higher levels of education were associated with higher fertility desire in two out of six regions. Similar results were found for women with two or more children. Children's sex composition played a role in the desire for additional children, reflecting both son preference and mixed-gender preference. In Vietnam overall, among women with at least one boy, those with lower levels of education were more likely not to want another child. The results, however, differed by region. The findings suggest that the social and economic context of each region, particularly sex ratio at birth and total fertility rate, should be taken into account when designing population policies in Vietnam.

Education Attainment and Women Entrepreneurship in Uganda: A Perspective

This study examined the impact of education attainment on women's desire and capacity to venture into entrepreneurship in Bunyoro sub-region, Uganda. The study was guided by the Human Capital Theory, which emerged in the 1960s through the works of Theodre Schultz in 1962. The theory holds that education enhances an individual’s efficiency and productivity skills, which in return increases the earnings of that individual in the labor market, as well as his/ her capacity to manage own business. The study adopted a descriptive correlation research design, primarily to determine the relationships between education attainment and women entrepreneurship in Bunyoro sub-region of Uganda. The mixed methods approach was used in data collection and 365 residents of Bunyoro participated in the study. Questionnaires were used to collect quantitative data, while key informants were interviewed for qualitative data. The study findings show that education attainment has a significant positive relationship with women entrepreneurship. This suggests that high level of education attainment increases women's potentials and capacity to own and successfullymanage a business. Keywords: Education attainment, Entrepreneurship, Women, Managing business, Bunyoro sub-region DOI: 10.7176/JAAS/76-04 Publication date: October 31 st 2021

The remarkable stability of fertility desires during the Colombian armed conflict 2000–2016

AbstractLimited attention has been paid so far to the impacts of war on proximate determinants of fertility, including childbearing preferences. This study explores the relationship between exposure to local conflict violence and fertility desires in Colombia. I combined nationally representative micro‐level data on the timing, frequency and decisiveness of reproductive preferences from the Demographic and Health Surveys, with geospatial information about local violence from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program from 2000 to 2016. The results show a remarkable stability in women's childbearing desires in relation to conflict during the observation period, robust to multiple respecifications of the study sample, statistical model and conflict measurements. The study indicates that previously reported increases to fertility behaviour cannot be explained by altered preferences, suggesting a surge in unwanted pregnancies. This highlights the need for policy programs to support women in realising their fertility preferences, whatever they may be.

Labor Companionship in Labor and Delivery at Debremarkos Town Public Health Facilities: Magnitude and Associated Factors.

BackgroundLabor companionship is a human interactive process that provides social support during the childbirth process. Despite it being one component of respectful maternity care (RMC) that is used for quality assurance to achieve the sustainable goal of maternal and neonatal mortality reduction, there is limited evidence about the current status of birth companionship. The study was aimed to assess labor companion and its associated factors at Debremarkos town public health facilities.MethodsAn institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted. The study was conducted at Debremarkos town from February 1/2021 to March 30/2021. From the 559 sample size, 548 women participated in the study. A systematic random sampling technique was used. A pre-tested interviewer-administered questioner was used, data were entered and analyzed with Epi-data version 4.60 and SPSS version 25.0. Bivariable regression was done and variables with p-value </= 0.20 were analyzed with multivariable logistic regression. Variables with p-value </= 0.05 were considered significantly associated with labor companionship. Hosmer–Lemeshow goodness of fit was checked and all multi-collinearity of variables with variance inflation factors (VIF) up to 10 was tolerated.ResultsA total of 548 participants were involved in the study with a 98.03% response rate. The magnitude of labor companionship was found to be 14.6% (11.7–17.5). Women who had complicated pregnancy (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=5.53; 95% CI: 3.09–9.92), women's desire for a labor companion (AOR=3.63; 95% CI: 1.51–8.69), being primipara (AOR=3.49; 95% CI: 1.93–6.35), labor followed by female skilled birth attendant (AOR=0.37;95% CI: 0.17–0.82), and women’s perceived busyness of skilled birth attendant (AOR=0.13;95% CI: 0.07–0.23) were significantly associated with labor companionship.ConclusionsLabor companionship was found to be low. Giving emphasis on the desire, primipara, complicated pregnancy, sex of skilled birth attendant and women perceived busy skilled birth attendant were suggested for the improvement of labor companionship.

Association between pregnancy intention and smoking or alcohol consumption in the preconception and pregnancy periods: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

To investigate the association between pregnancy intention and smoking or alcohol consumption in preconception and pregnancy periods. Suboptimal lifestyle such as smoking and alcohol consumption can lead to devastating outcomes on the maternal and foetus. Pregnancy intention exerts a significant effect on promoting healthy lifestyle behaviours. However, no reliable evidences confirmed pregnancy intention was associated with smoking and alcohol consumption before and during pregnancy. Systematic review and meta-analysis. We performed a comprehensive search from databases including PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore, MEDLINE, ProQuest and Scopus from the inception of these databases up to November, 2020. All eligible studies exploring the association between pregnancy intention and smoking or alcohol consumption were included. The fixed- or random effect pooled measure was used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) or risk ratio (RR) and 95% CI. In addition, the PRISMA checklist was used in this meta-analysis. A total of 23studies were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. During pregnancy, the findings suggested that women with unplanned pregnancy were 68% more likely to consume cigarettes (OR=1.68, 95% CI=1.44-1.95) and 44% more likely to consume alcohol (OR=1.44, 95% CI=1.15-1.81) than those women with planned pregnancy. Meanwhile, during preconception, women with unplanned pregnancy were 30% more likely to consume cigarettes (OR=1.30, 95% CI=1.10-1.53) and 20% more likely to consume alcohol (OR=1.20, 95% CI=1.01-1.42) than those women with planned pregnancy. The findings suggested that women with unplanned pregnancy were more likely to follow unhealthy behaviours such as smoking and alcohol consumption before and during pregnancy. Health professionals should consider the women's desire for pregnancy to decrease preconception and pregnancy smoking or alcohol consumption in future studies. Pregnancy intention is the key determinant of smoking and alcohol consumption during preconception and pregnancy periods. Offering effective contraception in primary healthcare setting could prevent unplanned pregnancy. Meanwhile, popularising minimal alcohol consumption and comprehensive smoke-free legislation would be beneficial to improve reproductive outcomes.

The Heteronormativity Theory of Low Sexual Desire in Women Partnered with Men.

Low sexual desire in women partnered with men is typically presumed to be a problem—one that exists in women and encourages a research agenda on causation and treatment targeting women. In this paper, we present a distinct way forward for research on low sexual desire in women partnered with men that attends to a more structural explanation: heteronormativity. A heteronormative worldview assumes that relationships and structures are heterosexual, gender (usually conflated with sex) is binary and complementary, and gender roles fit within narrow bounds including nurturant labor for women. We propose the heteronormativity theory of low sexual desire in women partnered with men, arguing that heteronormative gender inequities are contributing factors. We outline four hypotheses and their predictions related to: inequitable divisions of household labor, blurring of partner and mother roles, objectification of women, and gender norms surrounding sexual initiation. We discuss some mechanisms—social, physiological, and otherwise—for the heteronormativity theory, especially related to stress, objectification, and nurturance. We close by noting some limitations of our paper and the ways that the heteronormativity theory of low sexual desire in women partnered with men provides a rigorous, generative, and empirical way forward.

Delving into the dichotomous trajectory of Indian women flexpatriates: using the lens of JD-R theory

PurposeDrawing from the Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) theory, this paper aims to identify unique job demands, job resources and personal resources in the context of Indian women flexpatriates (IWFs) and understand how they manage to perform in their short-term international assignments (SIAs).Design/methodology/approachThis study takes a qualitative approach by conducting in-depth interviews of 15 IWFs.FindingsThematic analysis reveals dual-role workload, emotional demands and diluted importance of the assignments as job demands; opportunity for professional growth, social support and combination of work and leisure as job resources, and building up of self-esteem and self-efficacy as personal resources. Also, the unique Indian family structure, Indian women's desire to have “me-time” and zeal to strengthen their identity emerge as differentiating factors for IWFs that enhance their performance.Practical implicationsIWFs are enthusiastic to take up SIAs as it gives them opportunity to enhance their career and strengthen their identity. In addition to their willingness to travel, advance planning of SIAs and profiling of women based on marital status, family type and children can be done for selection.Social implicationsDespite hailing from paternalistic and male-dominating society and facing familial challenges, IWFs find SIAs liberating, which gives them an opportunity to spend some “me-time,” strengthen their identity and enhance their professional growth.Originality/valueThis is the first qualitative study contextualizing flexpatriation with gender and region by studying Indian women professionals.

Robust evidence for moderation of ovulatory shifts by partner attractiveness in Arslan et al.'s (2020) data.

Arslan et al. (2020) conducted a large-scale, preregistered daily diary study on over 400 normally ovulating women. Of core interest were hypotheses that women's ratings of their partner's sexual attractiveness moderate associations of fertility status with women's own extrapair sexual desires, their own interest in in-pair sex, and their partners' mate retention tactics. The authors claim that "no evidence for moderator effects" (p. 426) was found. In fact, their own analyses reported in their supplementary material show robust evidence for moderation effects. Moreover, a new reanalysis using a more comprehensive composite measure of male partner sexual attractiveness yielded even stronger results. Effect size estimates are consistent with the existence of large, meaningful moderation effects, revealing that this study actually does show evidence of moderation effects. Additional analyses show similarly strong moderator effects on male proprietariness. We discuss the findings in the context of reliance on binary (significant vs. nonsignificant) labels and the pitfalls of underreporting effects. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Professional ethics, VBAC and COVID-19 pandemic: A challenge to be resolved (Review).

Since the declaration of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020, the entire healthcare system is trying to adapt its capabilities to a challenge that induces a deep and continuous metamorphosis of people, strategies and policies. The right to proper health care is universal, and the patient's autonomy must be respected even in ambiguous times. In the context of increased Cesarean section (CS) rates, the women's desire to achieve vaginal birth after Cesarean section (VBAC) is becoming more articulate, and healthcare professionals need to adapt their approaches regarding the mode of delivery. But how to balance this aspect with respect to the paucity of resources during the pandemic, without infringing the fundamental rights and ethical principles is a demanding question. This article describes a clinical ethical decision-making framework for recommending trial of labor after Cesarean section (TOLAC), and individualized management of VBAC cases tailored upon the new circumstances dictated by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Review of Diagnosing Desire: Biopolitics and Femininity into the Twenty-First Century by Alyson K. Spurgas (The Ohio State University Press)

In Diagnosing Desire, Alyson K. Spurgas examines female sexual dysfunction, specifically low desire in women, and refuses to take anything for granted. One part history of modern sexology and one part feminist critique of the biopolitics engendered by sex research, Spurgas uses anti-racist, queer, disability studies, and trauma-informed theories to argue that the apolitical and atheoretical approach used in much of the modern science of sexuality confines women's sexual desire to a purely receptive model. Spurgas problematizes essentialist, anti-intersectional, and hetero- and cisnormative frameworks through which women's sexual desire has become a problem to be solved through self-improvement and by learning to push through feelings of low desire. Instead, Spurgas offers insights into the lives of women with low desire by attending to their experiences with inequality and trauma, and proposes a new understanding of women's sexuality—and of femininity more generally—based on prudent and critical attention to power.

Uncovering the Most Important Factors for Predicting Sexual Desire Using Explainable Machine Learning

Low sexual desire is the most common sexual problem reported with 34% of women and 15% of men reporting lack of desire for at least 3 months in a 12-month period. Sexual desire has previously been associated with both relationship and individual well-being highlighting the importance of understanding factors that contribute to sexual desire as improving sexual desire difficulties can help improve an individual's overall quality of life. The purpose of the present study was to identify the most salient individual (eg, attachment style, attitudes toward sexuality, gender) and relational (eg, relationship satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, romantic love) predictors of dyadic and solitary sexual desire from a large number of predictor variables. Previous research has relied primarily on traditional statistical models which are limited in their ability to estimate a large number of predictors, non-linear associations, and complex interactions. We used a machine learning algorithm, random forest (a type of highly non-linear decision tree), to circumvent these issues to predict dyadic and solitary sexual desire from a large number of predictors across 2 online samples (N = 1,846; includes 754 individuals forming 377 couples). We also used a Shapley value technique to estimate the size and direction of the effect of each predictor variable on the model outcome. The outcomes included total, dyadic, and solitary sexual desire measured using the Sexual Desire Inventory. The models predicted around 40% of variance in dyadic and solitary desire with women's desire being more predictable than men's overall. Several variables consistently predicted dyadic sexual desire such as sexual satisfaction and romantic love, and solitary desire such as masturbation and attitudes toward sexuality. These predictors were similar for both men and women and gender was not an important predictor of sexual desire. The results highlight the importance of addressing overall relationship satisfaction when sexual desire difficulties are presented in couples therapy. It is also important to understand clients' attitudes toward sexuality. The study improves on existing methodologies in the field and compares a large number of predictors of sexual desire. However, the data were cross-sectional and there may have been variables that are important for desire but were not present in the datasets. Higher sexual satisfaction and feelings of romantic love toward one's partner are important predictors of dyadic sexual desire whereas regular masturbation and more permissive attitudes toward sexuality predicted solitary sexual desire.

A Critical Discourse Analysis Of You C 1000 Audiovisual Ads In Shaping Indonesian Women’s Beauty Concept

Abstrak.Health and beauty ads are one of the most ads of interest in Indonesia. Beauty is every woman's desire, and the concept of beauty in Indonesia has been changed from time to time. YOU C 1000 is a healthy drink contains 1000 mg of vitamin C that offers a different concept of beauty to the public, especially to Indonesian women. This study aims to analyze the way of YOU C 1000 audiovisual ads in shaping the Indonesian women beauty concept by using the Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analyses (CDA) method. The findings of this study are divided into three dimensions of analysis, those are the microstructural (text), mesostructural (discourse), and macrostructural (sociocultural practices). It can be indicated from the ads that YOU C 1000 has been advertised by usingeasy-to-remember and catchy slogan, using Miss Universe as the powerful icon of women beauty, conveniently choosing the form of product to consume with a refreshing taste and packed in suitable packaging, using Indonesian images (its nature, culture, and people) and some of the Indonesian typical music in most of the ads, constantly articulating the product benefit and comparing it to other similar product, and also it is using some linguistic features that give strong opinion supported by general facts, and all of that ways is to deliver the ideology that beauty is start by being healthy inside and by that it will automatically radiate the true beauty outside and that one of the ways of being healthy is by consuming YOU C 1000 once a day regularly.

Vaginal birth after Cesarean experience in Romania: A retrospective case-series study and online survey.

The high Romanian Cesarean delivery rates have led to an increase in a women's desire to achieve vaginal birth after Cesarean delivery (VBAC), but certain impediments make this process difficult. We retrospectively evaluated the VBAC cases in a tertiary maternity hospital from Romania, and assessed the Romanian women's opinion about VBAC using a questionnaire that was distributed to three specific Facebook groups. We evaluated 63 patients who achieved VBAC between January 2014 and August 2020. In addition, an online survey with 41 open and closed questions assessed the participants' opinion regarding VBAC in Romania. The results are summarized and discussed. The results revealed that VBAC rates were under 1%. The main observed complications that followed VBAC were postpartum hemorrhage (15.8%), and uterine atony (7.93%), while the most frequent types of lesions encountered after VBAC were cervical tear (12.6%), followed by labial fissure (9.5%) and vaginal tear (7.9%). The patient's confidence in the health care system is low, and many women decide to try TOLAC at home. In conclusion, VBAC is an important topic in the context of high Romanian Cesarean rates, and the decision factors must provide consistent strategies that promote this mode of delivery.

How Nearby Homicides Affect Young Women's Pregnancy Desires: Evidence From a Quasi-Experiment.

Leveraging spatiotemporal variation in homicides that occurred during a 2.5-year weekly panel survey of 387 women ages 18-22 in Flint, Michigan, we investigate how young women's desires to become pregnant and to avoid pregnancy evolve in response to local homicides during the transition to adulthood. To address the endogeneity of exposure, we explore how the same woman's pregnancy desires (1) differed, on average, across weeks before and after the first homicide occurred within a quarter mile of her home; (2) evolved in the aftermath of this initial homicide exposure; and (3) changed in response to additional nearby homicides. One-fifth (22%) of women were exposed to a nearby homicide at least once during the study, and one-third of these women were exposed multiple times. Overall, the effects of nearby homicides were gradual: although average desires to become pregnant and to avoid pregnancy differed after initial exposure, these differences emerged approximately three to five months post-exposure. Repeated exposure to nearby homicides had nonlinear effects on how much women wanted to become pregnant and how much they wanted to avoid pregnancy. Together, our analyses provide a new explanation for why some young women-especially those who are socially disadvantaged-desire pregnancy at an early age.

Associations of rooming-in with maternal postpartum bonding: the impact of mothers' pre-delivery intentions

ObjectiveFull rooming-in, that is, mother and baby staying together for 24 hours per day after birth in the hospital, has been suggested as beneficial for positive maternal bonding. However, it has never been studied directly. We aimed to examine the association of full versus partial rooming-in and maternal bonding to her infant during the post-childbirth hospital stay. Study DesignLongitudinal questionnaire study. SettingMaternity ward of a large tertiary health care center in Israel. ParticipantsThe sample consisted of postpartum women (N = 293) in a maternity ward of a tertiary health care center who were fully or partially rooming-in. Measurements and FindingsQuestionnaires were administered at two time points, immediately after childbirth (T1; days 1-4) and 2 months postpartum (T2). The Childbirth Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), breastfeeding questions, and the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire (PBQ) were administered at T1; the PBQ was repeated at T2. Regression analysis revealed that the rooming-in mode did not significantly predict bonding at 1-4 days postpartum. However, the rooming-in mode was a significant predictor of bonding at two months postpartum only for women who practiced the rooming-in mode they had initially planned (Beta = 0.12, p < .05), while controlling for other demographic as well as obstetric variables. Women who chose and practiced partial rooming-in manifested more bonding difficulties than those who chose and practiced full rooming-in. These distinctions in bonding were not manifested when including in the analysis women who partially rooming-in, but not in accordance with their intentions. ConclusionsMother-infant bonding may be optimally supported when women's pre-labor desires to participate in full rooming-in are fulfilled. Implications for PracticeHospital staff should be aware of the mothers’ intentions regarding full rooming-in requests and make sincere efforts to accommodate and support their wishes.

Desire to avoid pregnancy and contraceptive use among female methadone patients in Los Angeles

ObjectiveOpioid use disorder (OUD) is increasing among U.S. women. Research indicates higher levels of unintended pregnancy among women with OUD as compared to the general population. Following formative in-depth research documenting the complexity of considerations around pregnancy in this population, we collected information on pregnancy preferences and contraceptive use among women attending methadone treatment. Study designWe surveyed women attending methadone clinics in Los Angeles in 2018. We used the Desire to Avoid Pregnancy (DAP) Scale, a 14-item instrument (0–4; 4 = highest desire to avoid pregnancy) to capture pregnancy preferences across 3 domains: cognitive desires, affective feelings, and anticipated consequences. We conducted factor analysis, descriptive analyses, and linear and logistic regressions to assess the DAP scale and to examine relationships between pregnancy preferences, sociodemographic characteristics, and contraceptive use. ResultsWomen (n = 46) expressed the full range of pregnancy preferences (DAP score range: 0.4–4.0; mean: 2.24, standard deviation: 1.02; Cronbach's α = 0.92). Overall, 40% used contraception at last sex. Women who reported a greater preference to avoid pregnancy were marginally more likely to use contraception at last sex as compared to women who were more open to pregnancy (odds ratio = 1.73; p = 0.09). ConclusionsSimilar to findings from other populations, responses to the Desire to Avoid Pregnancy scale among a sample of women with OUD revealed a broad range of pregnancy preferences. Pregnancy preferences were marginally associated with contraceptive use in this sample suggesting that the DAP may provide useful insights on pregnancy preferences that may facilitate contraceptive and preconception counseling in this population. ImplicationsGiven the complexity of considerations around pregnancy for women with opioid use disorder, the DAP scale may be a valuable tool to identify women's pregnancy and childbearing preferences and to facilitate alignment of women's sexual and reproductive health desires with appropriate services.

Teenaged mother's narratives: methodological dilemmas in tracing an emergent, yet muted, desire for motherhood

ABSTRACT This paper reflexively considers the muted narratives of a desire for pregnancy and parenthood in teenaged women's accounts of their journey to motherhood after deciding on abortion with their first, unexpected, pregnancy. By contrast their accounts were replete with good citizenship narratives that attested to pregnancy avoidance. Through the use of the Listening Guide, a feminist, layered, reflexive approach to data analysis, these accounts are considered in the wider social and cultural ‘narratives’ in the interview data, and the interviewee/interviewer relationship. It is suggested that the young women draw on dominant cultural tropes of the good teenager and mother, shaped by the desire to present themselves to the interviewer as acceptable citizens. It is debated whether the young women choose relative silence regarding their growing desire for pregnancy to avoid judgment in a society that problematises young motherhood, or are silenced by the same dominant discourse. Discussion considers what such a muted narrative might represent in a political and socio-cultural context. With narrow definitions of what is acceptable in the teenage years, and for motherhood, the young women's desire to present as acceptable may eclipse valuable contextual considerations that are important to practitioners and policy makers in providing effective support.

Chronic irisin exposure decreases sexual incentive motivation in female rats

Irisin is a novel myokine/adipokine that is released into the circulation in response to types of exercise and increases energy expenditure. Disorders in the endocrine system related to reproduction, which occur due to the chronic or excessive exercise, cause a decrease in women's sexual desire. However, the role of irisin hormone on sexual desire in women has not been elucidated. We hypothesized that chronic irisin exposure would decrease sexual incentive motivation for male partners by affecting the endocrine system in female rats. We tested this by quantifying and comparing of both sexual incentive motivation and active investigation for sexual partner, and also changes in the serum hormone levels in chronically irisin-treated female rats. As a result, chronic irisin exposure decreased the time spent near the male rat, male preference ratio, and male investigation preference ratio. Furthermore, serum testosterone and progesterone levels significantly decreased and estradiol levels increased while kisspeptin-1 levels were not changed by chronic irisin exposure in female rats. These data indicate that chronic irisin exposure may cause low sexual incentive motivation for opposite-sex partners in female rats via changes in reproductive hormones. The results suggest that irisin hormone may play a role in decreased sexual desire due to long-term exercise in women.