Who does what? Reproductive responsibilities between heterosexual partners

Managing fertility and sexual and reproductive health across the life course is associated with numerous responsibilities disproportionately experienced by women. This extends beyond dealing with the physical side effects of contraception and can include the emotional burden of planning conception a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Culture, health & sexuality health & sexuality, 2023-12, Vol.25 (12), p.1640-1658
Main Authors: Caddy, Cassandra, Temple-Smith, Meredith, Coombe, Jacqueline
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abortion
Autonomy
Birth control
Clinical decision making
Contraception
Decision making
Family planning
Family Planning Services
Female
Fertility
Gender roles
Health care expenditures
Health information
Health services
Heterosexuality
Humans
Life course
Life events
Low income groups
Male
masculinity
Men
Men - psychology
Pregnancy
pregnancy prevention
Prevention
Reproduction
Reproductive health
Reproductive responsibility
Sexual behavior
Sexual health
Sexual intercourse
Side effects
Women
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Summary:Managing fertility and sexual and reproductive health across the life course is associated with numerous responsibilities disproportionately experienced by women. This extends beyond dealing with the physical side effects of contraception and can include the emotional burden of planning conception and the financial cost of accessing health services. This scoping review aimed to map how reproductive responsibilities were defined and negotiated (if at all) between heterosexual casual and long-term partners during any reproductive life event. Original research in high-income countries published from 2015 onwards was sourced from Medline (Ovid), CINAHL and Scopus. In studies that focused on pregnancy prevention and abortion decision making, men felt conflict in their desire to be actively engaged while not wanting to impede their partner's agency and bodily autonomy. Studies identified multiple barriers to engaging in reproductive work including the lack of acceptable male-controlled contraception, poor sexual health knowledge, financial constraints, and the feminisation of family planning services. Traditional gender roles further shaped men's involvement in both pregnancy prevention and conception work. Despite this, studies reveal nuanced ways of sharing responsibilities - such as companionship during birth and abortion, ensuring contraception is used correctly during intercourse, and sharing the costs of reproductive health care.
ISSN:1369-1058
1464-5351
DOI:10.1080/13691058.2023.2173800