Conceiving contemporary parenthood: imagining, achieving and accounting for parenthood in new family forms

Gürtin, Zeynep B.; Faircloth, Charlotte

doi:10.1080/13648470.2018.1531614

Cited by 20 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Our findings show how reflexive and thoughtful the couples in our sample were regarding their transition to parenthood. As Gurtin and Faircloth (2019) argue, couples who seek parenthood through ARTs already see themselves as good parents and work within medical and legal frameworks to realise their goals. These couples reflexively saw themselves as future parents despite struggling with infertility and the stresses of previous IVF cycles.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transition to parenthood after successful non-donor in vitro fertilisation: The effects of infertility and in vitro fertilisation on previously infertile couples’ experiences of early parenthood

et al. 2019

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Recent social science research in the field of parenting following assisted conception has focused on the experiences of donor-assisted conception and surrogacy. This article draws from a study which explored the experiences of the transition to early parenthood in 16 heterosexual non-donor couples and includes a specific consideration of the experiences of men as they navigate this journey. We argue that these couples’ transition to early parenthood can be as complex and provisional as in other newer forms of family making as they struggle with an emerging identity as a parent after successful non-donor in vitro fertilisation following their experiences of infertility. Their family making is contingent upon their ability to work at integrating their experiences of infertility and in vitro fertilisation into their emerging identity as a parent. This struggle is prominent when they contemplate a further pregnancy. Considering a sibling causes them further uncertainty and anxiety because it reminds them of their infertile identify and the possibility of further in vitro fertilisation. We report novel findings about the experiences of this transition to parenthood: how couples’ identity as parents is shaped by the losses and grief of infertility and the anxiety of in vitro fertilisation. We argue that their struggle with an emerging parenthood identity challenges the normative, naturalised view of non-donor heterosexual in vitro fertilisation parenthood. Our work contributes to the work on identity in parenthood after in vitro fertilisation in an ongoing effort to understand how assisted technologies shape infertile parents’ lives. This article reports a small study with a relatively homogeneous sample recruited from one fertility clinic. Nevertheless as an exploratory study of an under researched topic, we discuss useful insights and ideas for further research with larger and more diverse samples.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transition to parenthood after successful non-donor in vitro fertilisation: The effects of infertility and in vitro fertilisation on previously infertile couples’ experiences of early parenthood

et al. 2019

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“…The experiences of involuntary childlessness, ARTs including IVF and new forms of family building (Gürtin & Faircloth, 2018), continue to be of interest to researchers. Heterosexual couples' experiences of non-donor IVF have received less attention, despite evidence that ARTs in this group continue to shape experiences of pregnancy and early parenthood (Allan et al, 2019(Allan et al, , 2021.…”

Section: Assisted Reproductive Technologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

'Just have some IVF!': A longitudinal ethnographic study of couples' experiences of seeking fertility treatment

Mounce

Allan

Carey

2022

Sociology Health & Illness

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We present findings from a longitudinal ethnographic study of infertile couples seeking treatment following initial GP referral to specialist fertility services.Repeated observations and interviews were undertaken with the same 14 heterosexual participants over an 18month period. Heterosexual, non-donor couples comprise the majority of fertility clinic patients; however, research interest in this group has dwindled over time as IVF cycles have increased. In the United Kingdom, IVF is presented as a logical response to involuntary childlessness, and as an entirely predictable, and linear, course of action. The market is well-developed and often patients' first experience of privatised health care in the NHS. Our couples were challenged by this, and while they felt expected to move on to IVF, some wished to explore other options. While IVF is ubiquitous, the discomfort and challenge around fertility treatments remain; experiences are prolonged and characterised by recursive narratives and expressions of disequilibrium, which are rarely acknowledged and reflected in ongoing clinic-patient interactions. Our findings develop understanding of the process of 'mazing' (Image -The Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 1989, 21, 220), the pursuit of parenthood, by showing that the routine and normative How to cite this article: Mounce, G., Allan, H. T., & Carey, N. 'Just have some IVF!': A longitudinal ethnographic study of couples' experiences of seeking fertility treatment.

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“…Through increasing possibilities in ART, fertility practitioners bear an important role voicing parenthood ideologies in the 21st century (Gürtin and Faircloth 2018). For fertility practitioners, norms and values about parenting are not only performative in day-today behavior (e.g., Van Gasse et al 2021), but also selective in the screening procedures they hold.…”

Section: Implications For Parenting In the 21st Centurymentioning

confidence: 99%

Fertility Practitioners’ Coping Strategies When Faced with Intra-Role Conflict from Screening Aspiring Single Mothers by Choice

et al. 2021

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Women without a partner can become single mothers by choice through the use of fertility treatments. In Belgium, the decision to accept a candidate single mother by choice rests with the fertility clinic’s multidisciplinary team of fertility practitioners. As a result, the fertility practitioners fulfil a gatekeeping role. However, this can cause an intra-role conflict as the responsibility to select the best fitting candidates is at odds with the responsibility to help patients. In this explorative study, we examine how fertility practitioners cope with the strain resulting from intra-role conflict in the decision-making process regarding single motherhood by choice in Belgium. The findings showed that practitioners appear to mainly resort to problem-focused coping, by constructing a grassroots criteria list and by shifting their role from screening agent to counsellor. These results are based on ten open in-depth interviews with fertility practitioners employed in the multidisciplinary teams of fertility centers, using a reflexive interview lead.

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Conceiving contemporary parenthood: imagining, achieving and accounting for parenthood in new family forms

Cited by 20 publications

References 6 publications

Transition to parenthood after successful non-donor in vitro fertilisation: The effects of infertility and in vitro fertilisation on previously infertile couples’ experiences of early parenthood

Transition to parenthood after successful non-donor in vitro fertilisation: The effects of infertility and in vitro fertilisation on previously infertile couples’ experiences of early parenthood

'Just have some IVF!': A longitudinal ethnographic study of couples' experiences of seeking fertility treatment

Fertility Practitioners’ Coping Strategies When Faced with Intra-Role Conflict from Screening Aspiring Single Mothers by Choice

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