Qualitative Study on Gender, Sexuality, and Marital Relationship in Narratives of Couples who Experienced Infertile Treatment

本研究的目的是探讨不孕不育夫妇的性别意识、性行为和夫妻关系。12名不孕妇女和3对夫妇参与了这项研究。参与者对访谈的回应是通过检查访谈记录和识别重要的陈述和意义来分类的。然后确定陈述中出现的主题和概念，并进行跨案例比较，以确认或重新考虑这些主题。从分析结果和数据整合中，最终从通过不孕症治疗怀孕并生下孩子的妇女的经历中确定了10个主要主题。此外，从数据中产生了四个关键概念：渴望孩子，性交的意义和目的，不孕不育治疗给予妇女的控制作用，以及不孕不育治疗对女性身体造成的风险。这四个概念绘制了一个模型，说明了接受不孕症治疗的丈夫和妻子之间的关系。这项研究的结果为提高人们对不孕症治疗的认识和支持咨询的基本组成部分提供了一个框架，而不管不孕症的结果如何。

The purpose of this qualitative narrative study was to investigate the gender consciousness, sexuality and the relationship in couples who experienced infertility treatment. A purposive sample of 12 infertile women and 3 couples participated in the study.Participant responses to interviews were categorized by examining the interview transcript and identifying significant statements and meanings. Themes and concepts which emerged from the statements were then ascertained and cross-case comparisons were made in order to confirm or to reconsider these themes.From the result of analysis, and integration of data, 10 main themes eventually from experiences of the women who became pregnant through infertility treatment and bore children were identified. Furthermore, four key concepts emerged from the data : desiring a child, the meaning and the purpose of sexual intercourse, the control role given to a women by infertility treatment, and the risk to the female body caused by infertility treatment.These four concepts drew the model illustrating the relation of husbands and wives who have received infertility treatment.The findings from this study provided a framework for increased awareness of infertility treatment and for the essential components of supportive counseling, regardless of the outcome of the infertility experience.