Adolescent maternity in a low income community: experiences revealed by oral history

Adapting to poverty and dealing with gender: a comparative perspective on teenage pregnancy in the Peruvian Amazon

Teenage pregnancy rates in the Peruvian Amazon are double the national average and among the highest in Latin America. Peruvian women living in rural, underserved and Amazon areas are more likely to become teenage mothers but the factors contributing to this socio-demographic trend are unclear. Thirty-one interviews and ethnographic observations of teenage and adult mothers living in the Peruvian Amazon were conducted to examine how social class and gender impacted their motherhood experiences. Despite preconceptions concerning the undesirability of teenage pregnancy, results show that teenage and adult mothers have similar experiences of motherhood. Both groups of women lack career and educational opportunities and are therefore economically dependent on men. This, combined with the cultural valorisation of motherhood, pushes them toward pregnancy and motherhood. In other words, pregnancy is a response to a lack of career and educational opportunities and not vice versa. The one difference found between teenage and adult mothers is that the former have less agency over reproductive decision making. In conclusion, motherhood among teenage and adult mothers in the Peruvian Amazon is an adaptive mechanism that gives women protection and fulfilment but is also the result of gender and class constraints that limit their life choices.

Vulnerabilidade na saúde do adolescente: questões contemporâneas

Este estudo exploratório de natureza qualitativa objetivou analisar como adolescentes percebem a realidade em termos da vulnerabilidade na saúde. Foram realizadas 17 entrevistas semiestruturadas com adolescentes de duas escolas de educação fundamental de um município do interior do estado de São Paulo. A interpretação dos dados, orientada pela análise de conteúdo, fez emergir três núcleos temáticos. Os resultados indicaram que os adolescentes compreendem a complexa interação entre a predisposição individual à vulnerabilidade para a saúde, bem como as questões relacionadas à estrutura social, o que contribui para o fortalecendo da concepção de vulnerabilidade a partir das lógicas individual, social e programática. Identificou-se que as políticas públicas, a prevenção e a assistência na adolescência não devem ser orientadas por um único referencial, mas sim pelo reconhecimento da pluralidade do ser adolescente quanto à vulnerabilidade em suas dimensões, rompendo, dessa forma, com a ideia de universalidade do processo de adolescer.

Qualidade de vida de adolescentes após a maternidade

OBJETIVO: Avaliar a influência de variáveis sociodemográficas, obstétricas e neonatais no índice de qualidade de vida de adolescentes após a maternidade. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal com 96 adolescentes que parturiram em um hospital de ensino, com coleta de dados realizada por meio de questionário aplicado em visita domiciliar. RESULTADOS: Índice Qualidade de Vida geral: 21,48. O domínio socioeconômico teve o menor escore atribuído (17,34) e o domínio família teve o maior escore (25,31). Variáveis estatisticamente significativas: escolaridade materna, renda própria, idade gestacional no momento do nascimento e o número de filhos vivos. CONCLUSÃO: Tais variáveis impactaram negativamente na qualidade de vida das adolescentes.

[Motherhood in the shelter context: the perspectives of sheltered adolescents]

The objective of this study is to describe the understanding that sheltered female adolescents have regarding motherhood and analyze their experience of this process from their perspective, for the purpose of identifying a support structure for young sheltered mothers. This exploratory and qualitative study was performed at two municipal shelters in Rio de Janeiro. The data were collected through focal groups performed with 10 sheltered adolescents. The content analysis of the data revealed two categories: Motherhood in adolescence: the perspective of the sheltered adolescent and Being a mother at the shelter: positive and negative experiences. Being a mother during adolescence is an ambivalent experience for the sheltered adolescents. The shelter is described as a supportive environment, but difficulties still exist in helping them to construct a healthy image of motherhood. There is a need to sensitize the social actors involved in terms of creating intersectoral interventions regarding the context and lifestyles of these youths, which could prevent vulnerability/disaffiliation of mother and child.

Religiosity and sexuality: experiences of Brazilian Catholic women

The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of a group of Catholic women related to the orientations received from priests and parents and their influence on sexual attitudes. The oral history method was used to interview 17 Catholic women. Three categories summarize women's experiences: orientations about sexuality received from priests; lack of orientation or existence of open dialogue about sexuality: distinct experiences in the family context; adherence or repudiation; and distinct attitudes toward orientations received. Health professionals systematically should seek knowledge about women's religious principles, because this is essential for meaningful and ethical health care.

Adolescent pregnancies and girls' sexual and reproductive rights in the amazon basin of Ecuador: an analysis of providers' and policy makers' discourses

Background

Adolescent pregnancies are a common phenomenon that can have both positive and negative consequences. The rights framework allows us to explore adolescent pregnancies not just as isolated events, but in relation to girls' sexual and reproductive freedom and their entitlement to a system of health protection that includes both health services and the so called social determinants of health. The aim of this study was to explore policy makers' and service providers' discourses concerning adolescent pregnancies, and discuss the consequences that those discourses have for the exercise of girls' sexual and reproductive rights' in the province of Orellana, located in the amazon basin of Ecuador.

Methods

We held six focus-group discussions and eleven in-depth interviews with 41 Orellana's service providers and policy makers. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using discourse analysis, specifically looking for interpretative repertoires.

Results

Four interpretative repertoires emerged from the interviews. The first repertoire identified was "sex is not for fun" and reflected a moralistic construction of girls' sexual and reproductive health that emphasized abstinence, and sent contradictory messages regarding contraceptive use. The second repertoire -"gendered sexuality and parenthood"-constructed women as sexually uninterested and responsible mothers, while men were constructed as sexually driven and unreliable. The third repertoire was "professionalizing adolescent pregnancies" and lead to patronizing attitudes towards adolescents and disregard of the importance of non-medical expertise. The final repertoire -"idealization of traditional family"-constructed family as the proper space for the raising of adolescents while at the same time acknowledging that sexual abuse and violence within families was common.

Conclusions

Providers' and policy makers' repertoires determined the areas that the array of sexual and reproductive health services should include, leaving out the ones more prone to cause conflict and opposition, such as gender equality, abortion provision and welfare services for pregnant adolescents. Moralistic attitudes and sexism were present - even if divergences were also found-, limiting services' capability to promote girls' sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Gravidez na adolescência: valores e reações dos membros da família

Objetivo: Descrever as experiências dos membros da família a respeito da gravidez na adolescência. Métodos: Na pesquisa, desenvolvida com a abordagem qualitativa, utilizou-se a análise da narrativa para sistematizar os dados. Resultados: Das narrativas de 19 entrevistados emergiram três categorias descritivas: Valores familiares e orientações fornecidas; O recebimento da notícia e as providências tomadas e O suporte fornecido. Conclusões: A gravidez ocorreu em um contexto de organização familiar sólida e as trajetórias das mulheres adolescentes após o nascimento da criança foram marcadas por alianças e suporte da rede social. A constituição do novo núcleo familiar foi caracterizada pela existência de apoio material e afetivo dos membros da família.