Search Results (9)

Africa is historically celebrated as the cradle of humankind. However, there is doubt on whether she is maintaining her own originality and position as the motherland and fatherland of all humanity. Although globalisation has impacted all continents and states, its negative effects seem to be skewing towards African and in particular Zimbabwean Shona families. This paper examines how DNA testing has impacted on some of the Shona families in Zimbabwe. The Shona community in Zimbabwe is culturally porous and receptive in terms of traditional, religious, linguistic and cultural values. They embraced Western democracy that is premised on human rights principles, constitutionalism, and citizenship, which, however, do not guarantee their belongingness. As some of the Shona families in Zimbabwe drifted away from the traditional cultural belief system campus, they got into a foreign and alien worldview that is dictated by the host in the name of technology. This has led to excessive reliance on foreign systems that are appearing like global standards yet they are disempowering them and causing them emotional and social distress. The reliance is a result of neocolonialism, linguistic and cultural imperialism that needs decolonisation. Thus, the paper adopts a qualitative approach based on an illuminating multiple case study design of six purposively selected scenarios aired on the The Closure DNA Show programme broadcasted on Zimbabwe Television (ZTV). The Afrocentric paradigm serves as a lens to uncover some of the perceptions of Shona families in Zimbabwe on DNA testing and its implications on parenthood, the family unit, and identity. The findings reveal that DNA testing is perceived as gender divisive and a destroyer of the family unit and exposing children to vulnerability, while it is also perceived positively as a way of (dis)affirming identity, which is crucial among the Shona. The paper recommends that other television programmes be screened based on their implications on gender relations, the family unit and identity. Full article

Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHRs) remain a sensitive issue in Indonesia due to entrenched structural, cultural, and social barriers, particularly affecting adolescents, women, and minority groups. In response, the Indonesian Planned Parenthood Association of Yogyakarta Special Region (PKBI DIY) actively promotes SRHR access through value-based, community-centred communication strategies. This study explores how PKBI DIY applies strategic communication to strengthen SRHR advocacy by employing collaborative and participatory methods. Using a qualitative case study approach, researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 11 key informants. Thematic analysis identified three core strategies. First, PKBI DIY fosters inclusive and non-discriminatory communication through educational outreach that challenges stigma and engages diverse audiences. Second, it adopts value-driven, community-focused communication practices that reflect its organisational ethos and build public trust. Third, it practices reflective and collaborative communication with government bodies, civil society, and the media to reinforce advocacy and ensure sustainable outcomes. PKBI DIY illustrates that NGO communication transcends message delivery by embodying advocacy values, affirming organisational identity, and supporting long-term impact. The findings contribute to the broader discourse on value-based strategic communication in human rights work and provide practical guidance for NGOs aiming to implement ethical and socially impactful communication models in SRHR. Full article

In Chile, lesbian-parent families have faced legal and social advancements as well as challenges, generating new dynamics through assisted reproduction. The reproductive justice framework allows for an analysis of the inequities and injustices experienced by LGBTIQA+ people in relation to their reproductive rights. Objective: To analyze the narratives of lesbian-parent families who have accessed parenthood through assisted reproduction techniques within the Chilean healthcare system, identifying barriers and facilitators in the process, as well as possible instances of discrimination. Methodology: This research adopted a qualitative approach with a descriptive scope and was based on a constructivist paradigm, utilizing a narrative design and analysis. Four lesbian-parent families participated, selected through purposive or convenience sampling. Results: The findings revealed that the main barriers were related to health insurance coverage and social and geographical factors. Among the key facilitators were support networks, educational level, and healthcare professionals’ guidance. Discussion: The study highlighted the presence of inequalities affecting the exercise of parenthood and the right to form a family, shaped by institutional and social barriers from a reproductive justice framework. Conclusions: The study underscores the need to advance inclusive public policies and systemic changes that recognize and protect family diversity in Chile. Furthermore, it highlights the role of narratives as a tool to make visible and challenge the inequalities surrounding lesbian parenthood. Full article

The birth rate data in Italy continue to be discouraging. They are taking on the nature of a structural problem given the continuous decline in population, which is neither accompanied by significant structural policies to promote parenthood, nor supporting the births of fertile generations. This study uses a mixed methods approach and was started in 2022 with the creation of six focus groups in the southern Italian regions of Basilicata, Campania, Calabria, Molise, Puglia, and Sicily. Images taken from the “Fertility Day” social communication campaign were used as a visual stimulus to initiate the discussion. In 2024, it continued with a survey based on a pilot study at a hospital involving pregnant women in southern Italy. The results show that the choice to become parents is not only interconnected with either socio-economic issues or the presence/absence of services and incentives but also relates to emerging cultural models that need to be better understood. On this basis, the dual role of institutions in promoting policies therefore becomes fundamental. On the one hand, the “guarantors” of human, civil, and social rights, which have been developed and established over the centuries, are significant. On the other hand, the “promoters” of parental support pathways are needed. Full article

The article examines the changes to Italian legislation on assisted reproductive technology (ART) resulting from rulings by Italian courts, highlighting unresolved ethical–legal issues and potential future regulatory approaches consistent with these decisions. Additionally, it addresses the amendment defining surrogacy as “universal crime”, effective as of 18 November 2024. Through an analysis of decisions by the Constitutional Court and the Court of Cassation, it emerges that Law No. 40/2004 has been deemed unconstitutional in relation to the following: heterologous fertilization, the number of embryos that can be created, cryopreservation, the implantation of only healthy embryos, and access to ART for fertile couples. Controversial aspects include the fate of surplus embryos, access to ART for single individuals, and the recognition of parenthood for same-sex couples. The “universal crime” classification of surrogacy raises the possibility of legal consequences for individuals engaging in surrogacy abroad, even where it is lawful. Courts are unlikely to legislate on the allocation of surplus embryos without parliamentary intervention or to allow single individuals access to ART, given the perceived inconsistency with the child’s best interests. However, case-by-case evaluations are essential for recognizing non-biological or non-genetic parents in same-sex relationships and for assessing the effectiveness of the universal crime approach in safeguarding rights and public health. Full article

Although sexuality, reproductive health, and starting a family are human rights that should be guaranteed for all citizens, they are still taboo issues for people with intellectual disability (ID), and even more so for women with ID. This paper systematically reviews the current qualitative and quantitative evidence on the rights of people with ID in regard to Articles 23 (right to home and family) and 25 (health, specifically sexual and reproductive health) of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). A systematic review of the current literature, following PRISMA 2020, was carried out in ERIC, PsychInfo, Scopus, PubMed, ProQuest, and Web of Science. In all, 151 articles were included for review. The studies were categorized into six themes: attitudes, intimate relationships, sexual and reproductive health, sexuality and sex education, pregnancy, and parenthood. There are still many barriers that prevent people with ID from fully exercising their right to sexuality, reproductive health, and parenthood, most notably communicative and attitudinal barriers. These findings underline the need to continue advancing the rights of people with ID, relying on Schalock and Verdurgo’s eight-dimensional quality of life model as the ideal conceptual framework for translating such abstract concepts into practice and policy. Full article

Research on LGBTIQ+ families has focused on the effects of being in a diverse family on the development of children. We seek to show the experience of parenthood from the perspective of LGBTIQ+ people, considering its particularities and the role that health care services play as a potential support network. We used the biographical method through open-ended interviews, participants were LGBT people, and key informants from Chile, Colombia, and Mexico were selected based on a sociostructural sampling. We found that internalized stigma impacts LGBTIQ+ parenting in five ways: the impossibility of thinking of oneself as a parent, fear of violating children’s rights, fear of passing on the stigma, fear of introducing their LGBTIQ+ partner, and the greater discrimination that trans and intersex people suffer. We identified gaps in health care perceptions: the need to guarantee universal access to health care, the need to include a gender perspective and inclusive treatment by health personnel, mental health programs with a community approach, access to assisted fertilization programs, and the generation of collaborative alliances between health services, civil society organizations, and the LGBTIQ+ community. We conclude that the health system is a crucial space from which to enable guarantees for the exercise of rights and overcome internalized stigma. Full article

This article examines the beginning of transnational adoption in Denmark and Norway to illuminate the role of private actors and associations in Scandinavian welfare systems. Utilizing case studies of two prominent private adoption actors, Tytte Botfeldt and Torbjørn Jelstad, the article analyzes how these Nordic welfare states responded to the emergence of transnational adoption in comparison with both each other, neighboring Sweden, and the United States. This study shows that private actors and associations strongly influenced the nascent international adoption systems in these countries, by effectively promoting transnational adoption as a progressive and humanitarian form of global parenthood; while simultaneously emphasizing the responsibility of the welfare state to accommodate and alleviate childless couples’ human rights and need for children. A need that was strong enough that couples were willing to transcend legal, national, and racial borders. Ultimately, Danish and Norwegian authorities not only had to show leniency towards flagrant violations of adoption and child placement rules, but also change these so that families could fulfill their great need for children by legally adopting them from abroad. Full article

Multiple sclerosis confronts patients, partners and their children with a wide array of challenges. In addition to physical symptoms, multiple sclerosis may result in cognitive dysfunction, depression or personality changes. Changes in family roles, loss of work, income and social status and caregiver burnout are common in these families. Thus multiple sclerosis represents a disease condition that has the potential to affect partner and children in a number of ways. Based on studies of 70 families and 110 of their offspring by means of semi-structured psychiatric interviews, questionnaires and psychological tests, we evaluated the coping process of the ill, the healthy parent and their children. We analysed disease variables, parental factors and family situations favouring the coping process of children or aggravating their burden, resulting in serious consequences for their psychosocial development. The results with respect to the coping of all family members show the mutual influences between the parental couple as well as between the parents and their children. The better patient or partner are able to cope with the disease, the higher are the values of the coping capacity of the partner and the patient respectively. Children’s coping abilities are influenced by their parents’ coping behaviour, and even stronger by the coping competence of the healthy parent. With regard to disease variables there are significant correlations between the severity of the disease, cognitive impairment and the degree of depression. Additional cognitive dysfunction of the patient is associated with depressive symptoms in his or her partner. Psychological distress affects not only the chronically ill patient but also the caregiver. A severe parental disease is considered as a potential risk factor for psychological trauma in children. If multiple psychosocial distress factors come together, the impact on the child’s psychological development may be traumatising. Main factors aggravating children’s burden and impeding their coping process are: parental depression, single parenthood and social isolation of the family, parental communication incapacity and unresolved traumatic experience in the parents’ own past history. The latter may be associated with the parent’s feelings of victimisation and a tendency to focus his or her life around the disease. Such an attitude interferes with his or her capacity to perceive and be available to the child’s developmental and affective needs, leading eventually to her or his emotional or in rare cases physical abuse. In this context, social isolation may operate as a more or less important factor. As to symptom formation in children, somatisation and hypochondrial fears are more frequent manifestations – evolving through identification with the ill parent – in children of somatically ill parents than in children of healthy parents. Important factors contributing to children’s mental health in a situation of a multiple sclerosis disease are: fulfilling children’s developmental and emotional needs and respecting their plays, interests and activities; parents’ perception of the illness effects on children and open communication within the family about the disease situation; assuring children that their parents are adequately supported by a social network and opportunity for children to engage in alternative relationships. Against the background of the disease course, family dynamics and life phase, the coping process of each family and its individual members varies greatly. There is clearly no right or wrong way of coping; to understand the very particular meaning each family attributes to the disease is of fundamental importance to the helping professional. The importance of the family of the ill parent, the function and competence of the parental couple and the welfare of the children have to be analysed most carefully before the possibility of preventive/ therapeutic intervention can be introduced. Full article