Collaborative Research: The Cultural Context of Infertility in Southern Nigeria: Meanings, Consequences and Coping Mechanisms

不孕症（不能怀孕或怀孕至足月）是撒哈拉以南非洲的一个主要问题，在那里的许多社会中，不能生育的妇女受到侮辱，往往无法完全进入社会成年。非洲的不孕症问题得到社会科学家相对较少的关注，因为该区域的高生育率使这个问题变得模糊不清，这导致了对人口增长的担忧。这项由人类学家、人口学家和社会学家组成的研究小组对尼日利亚南部两个社区的不孕症进行了比较深入的研究。它将调查不孕不育的当地含义，因为这些是由社会和文化背景形成的；不孕症的流行对这些意义的影响；以及Ijo和Yakurr人中不育妇女及其男性伴侣的社区反应以及生活经历和寻求治疗的行为。尼日尔三角洲的Patani和克罗斯河州的Ugep这两个社区主要是农村，位于该国的同一区域。Patani的血统是父系的，而Ugep是双单系的。此外，Ugep的不孕症水平较高，而Patani的不孕症水平相对较低。在Patani，女性不孕症的耻辱感比Ugep要高得多。该项目将研究这些对不孕症的不同反应如何与社会组织和不孕症率的差异有关。这项对这些社区的比较研究将考察不孕不育在当地背景下的意义，并分析影响这些意义的社会和文化变量。这项研究的更广泛影响在于新信息对决策者、保健专家和社会服务提供者的价值。鉴于在撒哈拉以南非洲地区无法治愈不孕症，通过认识不孕症的原因进行预防是降低其发病率和流行率的唯一手段。更好地了解不孕症的社会后果将有助于制定旨在改善与之相关的耻辱的战略，也有助于更好地了解生育。这项研究还将有助于与尼日利亚的研究人员建立伙伴关系。其学术价值在于对人口人类学领域的贡献，特别是创造了考虑个人与其文化背景相互作用的“整体人口学”。

Infertility (the inability to conceive or to carry a pregnancy to full term) is a problem of major proportions in sub-Saharan Africa, where in many societies women who are unable to bear children are stigmatized and are often unable to reach full social adulthood. The problem of infertility in Africa received relatively little attention from social scientists since it was obscured by the region's high fertility rates, which resulted in a concern over population growth. This research by a team of an anthropologist, a demographer and a sociologist involves a comparative in-depth study of infertility in the context of two southern Nigerian communities. It will investigate local meanings of infertility as these are shaped by the social and cultural context; the impact of the prevalence of infertility on these meanings; and how the community responses as well as the life experiences and treatment-seeking behaviors of infertile women and their male partners among the Ijo and Yakurr people. The two communities, Patani in the Niger Delta and Ugep in Cross River State, are primarily rural and located in the same region of the country. Descent in Patani is patrilineal whereas in Ugep it is double unilineal. In addition, high levels of infertility are historically documented for Ugep, whereas infertility levels in Patani are relatively low. The amount of stigma attached to female infertility in Patani is considerably higher than it is in Ugep. The project will study how these differential responses to infertility are related to the differences in social organization and infertility rates. This comparative study of these communities will examine the meaning of infertility in its local context as well as analyze the social and cultural variables that influence those meanings. The broader impact of the research lies in the value of the new information for policy makers, health care specialists and social service providers. Given that no cure exists for infertility in the context of sub-Saharan African, prevention through awareness of the causes of infertility is the only means whereby its incidence and prevalence may be lowered. A better understanding of the social consequences of infertility will help formulate strategies aimed at ameliorating the stigma associated with it and also contribute to better understanding of fertility. The research will also contribute to building a partnership with Nigerian researchers. The intellectual merit lies in a contribution to the field of demographic anthropology, specifically to the creation of "whole demographies" which take account of the interaction of individuals with their cultural contexts.