ABSTRACT
This study investigated the Perceptions and
response on the Impact of Childlessness on Involuntary childless couples in south
east Nigeria using Awgu Local Government Area, of Enugu state. The study was
conducted between November 2017 and May 2018. Six research questions and two
hypotheses were formulated. The research design used was sample survey
descriptive design. The quantitative and qualitative instruments used for data
collection are Questionnaire and In-depth Interview guide respectively. The
sampling techniques used for this study was multi stage sampling technique.
Four hundred (400) questionnaires were shared randomly among the selected
respondents. Three hundred and seventy questionnaires was retrieved, the data
collected was processed using SPSS software. The statistical tool used to
analyze is computerized statistical package for social science and the chi- square
formulae was used in testing the research hypotheses. From the analysis of the
data, the major findings among others include; sickness and diseases is the
major cause of childlessness, there is a negative attitude of childless couples
towards child adoption and surrogacy as a solution to their problem. Childless
couple also suffer stigmatization, depression, labeling, abuse, disrespectful
attitude from spouse and family members In view of these findings, the study
recommend among others that: mass enlightenment of the public could help
increase the knowledge of the causes of childlessness among couples and also
reduce feeling of inferiority complex among childless couples. Childless couples should seek for medical treatment
jointly.
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background to the Study
According to Merlo
(2002), procreation is the function of the family; every man takes a wife
apparently to have children for the continuity of his name and linage and for
general productivity and development in the society. In traditional Igbo
society, many wives try to ensure the procreation of children to its fullest
limit. Where this main purpose of marriage is not forth coming into fulfillment
it results to tension.
Zastrow (2001), identified reasons
couples decided to have children, from the origin, biblically, having children
is a blessed event and ranging from religion to ideology to economic necessity
and cultural expectation. Historically, in agricultural and pre-industrial
societies children were seen as economic asset; their labors were important in
planting and harvesting crops and in tending domestic animals. Parents wanted
large families to help with the work because, children were seen as economic
asset, and values were gradually established that it was natural and desirable
for involuntary childless couples to procreate.
In a typical traditional society
childlessness has been regarded as great personal tragedy involving much
emotional pain and grief, especially when it results from the failure to conceive
(infertility) or when it results from the death of a child (Charlene, 2007).
According to Mccury (2005), before
conception was well understood, childlessness was usually blamed on the woman
and this in itself added to the high negative emotional and social effects of
childlessness. The concept
“childlessness” can be seen in two senses in this study. Rowland (2001), Merlo
(2002), and Zastrow (2001) describe childlessness as the willingness to have
children but they are not forth coming and childlessness as the ability to have
children but decide not to. Childlessness as the unwillingness to have children
implies to involuntary childless couples that choose not to have children and
this is termed “child free”. In the same vein childlessness as the willingness
to have children refers to involuntary childless couples that are ready and
willing to have children but are not able and this is the termed “involuntary
childlessness” (Zastrow 2001), this is the concern of this study.
Some wealthy families also adopt
children as a means of providing heirs in case of childlessness. The monetary incentives
offered by the westerner’s desire for children are so strong that a commercial
market in the child laundering business exists. Merlo (2002) and Rowland (2001)
are of opinion that childlessness is concern, partly with its implications for
the maintenance of society and partly because of its consequences for
individual. Childlessness has a function of population control but that is not
the concern of this study. The main focus of this study is the effects and
implication of childlessness for involuntary childless couples in the society.
Throughout the world and particularly in
African societies, the word “childlessness” sends a cold signal and the sense
of pity is immediately aroused. Having children is necessary for involuntary
childless couples and is considered as a major necessity in marriage. From
cultural and traditional perspective the reason for marriage is for procreation,
continuity of linage and impact or transferring cultural values and norm form
one generation to another within the society (Gibson 2002).
In modern world, “childlessness” denotes
merely the absence of children. The term has intimations of loss and
bereavement, but technically applies to any without children; whether this is
by choice, by circumstance, or by biology is undermined.
The
social construction in many cultures is that men and women are meant to become
parents and that women especially socialized to become mothers (Gibson, Meyer
and Dyer 2002) found that most of the married women considered fertility as the
primary function of being a woman. Becoming a parent will often corroborate
feeling of self worth and sexual identity when people have been socialized into
that role. In essence, the social construction of the role of mothers and
fathers has become a part of the identities of man and woman in the society. A
study conducted by Gibson and Meyers (2002) indicates that in general women experience
more negative effects than men throughout the entire involuntarily childless diagnostic
and treatment process. Women experience a greater sense of loss of control than
men, and have a greater tendency to blame themselves for the couple’s infertility.
Adding to this, women are more likely to perceive childlessness as simply
unacceptable. Many authors suggest that women experience a more difficult
adjustment to infertility than their partners, due in large part to the
emphasis in our society on the role of women as mothers.
The
purpose of this study is to explore the phase women endure from being childless
and to highlight some of the complexities underpinning childlessness and its
impacts on married couple, and family in Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu state
and also to gain deeper insight into how women incorporated this experience
into their lives and relationships and how they began to create a future life
without their own biological children.
Based on the trends
of childlessness in Nigeria, this project has been undertaken to ascertain the
extent of peoples’ perception on the impact of childlessness on involuntary
childless couples in Nigeria using Awgu Local Government Area, Enugu State
Nigeria as a case study.
1.2
Statement of the Problem
The number of childless
couples is tremendously on the increase, According to Ugwuanyi (2000), this is
evident to the fact that attempts to initiate a move which would have been
directed towards adoption is taken with serious resistance in some places like
Nigeria mostly by couples without even a child.
According to Dike (2013) most couples
are childless as a result of the degree of their waywardness when they were
young or during their youthful age and unmarried, such as illicit use of drugs
in order to avoid pregnancy, smoking of cigrates, cocaine, and marijuana e.t.c.
The World Health Organization (2014)
stated that involuntary childless couples suffer from childlessness for so many
reason such as drug abuse, hard drugs intake, contraception, numerous abortions,
and genetically inherited sickness that could lead to low sperm count and most
cases psychological problems.
According to Nwapa (2004), some couples
attribute to their problem of childlessness to the supernatural, the hope in
God that gives children to remember them at the appropriate time while some
couples usually fall back to their fetish lifestyle consulting their gods to
seek solutions to their problem or appealing their gods as a means to cleanse
them from such predicament. Nwapa also outline that childlessness can also be
seen as consequences from the gods when an abomination or taboo has been
committed, there can also be death of existing children rendering the involuntary
childless couples childless (Nwapa 2004).
Involuntary childless couples faces a
lot of problems and discrimination, from the society due to the fact that the involuntary
childless couples cannot procreate but in the same vein the society also suffer
30% of this childlessness problem, there will be low manpower and fluctuating number of people in the
workforce and the social structure will not function properly (Hales 2000).
The
researcher carried out a survey to find out the factors that generate
childlessness, origin of childlessness in Awgu and people’s perception about
childlessness and its effects, and implication on involuntary childless couples
in Nigeria using Awgu Local
Government, Enugu State Nigeria as a case study with the view of
proffering solution by ways of recommendation and intervention.
1.3
Research Questions
The following research questions have
been put forward to guide this study.
1. What
are the causes of childlessness in Awgu L.G.A?
2. What
are the social implications of childlessness on involuntary childless couples
in Awgu L.G.A?
3. What
are the cultural implications of childlessness on involuntary childless couples
in Awgu L.G.A?
4. What
are the psychological implications of childlessness on involuntary childless
couples in Awgu L.G.A?
5. What
are the perceptions of the public towards childless couples in Awgu L.G.A?
What are the
solutions to childlessness problem inAwgu L.G.A?================================================================
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