Whose voice? Whose experiences? Women's qualitative accounts of general and private discussion of premenstrual syndrome

Little is known about the disparity between public perceptions of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and how women perceive PMS. In this interview study the perceptions 17 healthy women have about the discussion on PMS are described. Qualitative and quantitative content analysis of the interviews resulted...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scandinavian journal of caring sciences 2002-12, Vol.16 (4), p.414-423
Main Authors: Sveinsdóttir, Herdís, Lundman, Berit, Norberg, Astrid
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Attitude to Health
discourse
Discourse analysis
Female
Health Education
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Iceland
interviews
Male
Mass Media
Men - psychology
Needs Assessment
Negativism
Nursing
Perceptions
premenstrual dys- phoric disorder
Premenstrual syndrome
Premenstrual Syndrome - psychology
premenstrual tension
Public perception
Qualitative Research
Stereotyping
Surveys and Questionnaires
Women
Women - psychology
women's health
Women's Rights
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Summary:Little is known about the disparity between public perceptions of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and how women perceive PMS. In this interview study the perceptions 17 healthy women have about the discussion on PMS are described. Qualitative and quantitative content analysis of the interviews resulted in three main categories: (i) Turning women's experiences against them, (ii) PMS as a silent part of everyday life and (3) Symptoms and experiences reported: public instability, private discomfort. These categories contain statements from the participants ascertaining that men talk negatively about PMS, the media portray PMS negatively, other women's premenstrual experiences are more negative than their own experiences and they do not need to discuss their experiences although they find it important to increase positive public discussion. The conclusions are that (i) the public voice on PMS is based on negative male stereotypical views about PMS and that women participate in constructing and sustaining that view through their own descriptions of other women; (ii) through media and health education, women and men should be made aware of whose voice rules in public discussion; (iii) to educate and change the public discourse on PMS is a challenge that the caring professions must take.
ISSN:0283-9318
1471-6712
DOI:10.1046/j.1471-6712.2002.00077.x