In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum

Studies have shown that infertility may be caused by male factors, female factors, a mixture of both male and female factors, or due to unexplained reasons. Nevertheless, in some societies, infertility is frequently seen as solely a woman’s problem and women with infertility problems are often force...

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Main Authors: Chiew, Pung Wun, Mohd Jan, Jariah
Format: Article
Published: Universiti Putra Malaysia 2018
Subjects:
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author Chiew, Pung Wun
Mohd Jan, Jariah
author_facet Chiew, Pung Wun
Mohd Jan, Jariah
author_sort Chiew, Pung Wun
collection UM
description Studies have shown that infertility may be caused by male factors, female factors, a mixture of both male and female factors, or due to unexplained reasons. Nevertheless, in some societies, infertility is frequently seen as solely a woman’s problem and women with infertility problems are often forced to suffer blame and humiliation in silence. For example, in Malaysia, a barren married woman is looked down upon, has a lower status, and may be divorced from her husband. Infertility becomes a taboo topic and therefore, not much is known about Malaysian women with infertility problems. However, with the anonymity afforded by computer-mediated communication (CMC), these women are now turning to the online medium for help. This study uses the web content analysis method to investigate the inquiries made by Malaysian women over in vitro fertilization (IVF), a type of infertility treatment, in a local online forum. The findings revealed that the questions asked by women in the forum were primarily concerned with seeking information about IVF. Other types of questions asked include opinion-seeking and questions requesting experience-sharing. These women were also found to use various solidarity strategies to support and encourage one another in persevering with their treatment.
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spelling um.eprints-222202019-09-04T06:41:26Z http://eprints.um.edu.my/22220/ In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum Chiew, Pung Wun Mohd Jan, Jariah HQ The family. Marriage. Woman Communication. Mass media Studies have shown that infertility may be caused by male factors, female factors, a mixture of both male and female factors, or due to unexplained reasons. Nevertheless, in some societies, infertility is frequently seen as solely a woman’s problem and women with infertility problems are often forced to suffer blame and humiliation in silence. For example, in Malaysia, a barren married woman is looked down upon, has a lower status, and may be divorced from her husband. Infertility becomes a taboo topic and therefore, not much is known about Malaysian women with infertility problems. However, with the anonymity afforded by computer-mediated communication (CMC), these women are now turning to the online medium for help. This study uses the web content analysis method to investigate the inquiries made by Malaysian women over in vitro fertilization (IVF), a type of infertility treatment, in a local online forum. The findings revealed that the questions asked by women in the forum were primarily concerned with seeking information about IVF. Other types of questions asked include opinion-seeking and questions requesting experience-sharing. These women were also found to use various solidarity strategies to support and encourage one another in persevering with their treatment. Universiti Putra Malaysia 2018 Article PeerReviewed Chiew, Pung Wun and Mohd Jan, Jariah (2018) In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 26 (T). pp. 79-96. ISSN 0128-7702, http://www.pertanika.upm.edu.my/Pertanika%20PAPERS/JSSH%20Vol.%2026%20(T)%20Dec.%202018/07%20JSSH-2330-2017.pdf
spellingShingle HQ The family. Marriage. Woman
Communication. Mass media
Chiew, Pung Wun
Mohd Jan, Jariah
In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title_full In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title_fullStr In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title_full_unstemmed In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title_short In vitro fertilisation: Women’s questions and concerns in a Malaysian online forum
title_sort in vitro fertilisation women s questions and concerns in a malaysian online forum
topic HQ The family. Marriage. Woman
Communication. Mass media
work_keys_str_mv AT chiewpungwun invitrofertilisationwomensquestionsandconcernsinamalaysianonlineforum
AT mohdjanjariah invitrofertilisationwomensquestionsandconcernsinamalaysianonlineforum