Daughters at Risk of Female Genital Mutilation: Examining the Determinants of Mothers’ Intentions to Allow Their Daughters to Undergo Female Genital Mutilation

Abstract

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is still a common practice in many countries in Africa and the Middle East. Understanding the determinants of FGM can lead to more active interventions to prevent this harmful practice. The goal of this study is to explore factors associated with FGM behavior among Iranian mothers and their daughters. Based on Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior, we examined the predictive value of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and several socio-demographic variables in relation to mothers’ intentions to mutilate their daughters. A paper-and-pencil survey was conducted among 300 mothers (mean age = 33.20, SD = 9.09) who had at least one daughter and who lived in Ravansar, a county in Kermanshah Province in Iran. Structural equation modeling was used to investigate the relationships among the study variables. Our results indicate that attitude is the strongest predictor of mothers’ intentions to allow their daughters to undergo FGM, followed by subjective norms. Compared to younger mothers, older mothers have more positive attitudes toward FGM, perceive themselves as having more control over their behavior and demonstrate a greater intention to allow their daughter to undergo FGM. Furthermore, we found that less educated mothers and mothers living in rural areas had more positive attitudes toward FGM and feel more social pressure to allow FGM. The model accounts for 93 percent of the variance in the mothers’ intentions to allow their daughters to undergo FGM. Intervention programs that want to decrease FGM might focus primarily on converting mothers’ neutral or positive feelings toward FGM into negative attitudes and on alleviating the perceived social pressure to mutilate one’s daughter. Based on our findings, we provide recommendations about how to curtail mothers’ intentions to allow their daughters to undergo FGM.

Female genital mutilation: current awareness, believes and future intention in rural Egypt

“…The logistic regression analysis showed that knowledge, attitude, religion and women’s status are significant predictors of future FGM practice among the daughters of females, with attitude that FGM is a good practice representing the major cause. These findings were in agreement with Pashaei et al who examined the determinants of women’s intentions to subject their daughters to FGM, and it was found that attitude was the strongest predictor of perpetuation of FGM [ 18 ]. Therefore, intervention programs to decrease FGM might focus primarily on converting women’s positive attitude toward FGM into negative attitude, and on alleviating the perceived social pressure to mutilate one’s daughter [ 19 ].…”

Health care-seeking patterns for female genital mutilation/cutting among young Somalis in Norway

“…Although our analysis reveals that women who supported the practice were more likely to be circumcised, it is noteworthy that the majority of the women who have undergone FGM/C are in support of the practice. Being circumcised may not necessarily mean being supportive of the practice [ 36 ]. Parents and family or the duress of social and peer pressure initiated the decision for circumcision in most cases [ 36 , 37 ].…”

“…Being circumcised may not necessarily mean being supportive of the practice [ 36 ]. Parents and family or the duress of social and peer pressure initiated the decision for circumcision in most cases [ 36 , 37 ]. As most of the young women in the present study had been circumcised prior to migration, it is apparent that most of them were circumcised at an early age based on parental/family decision, as circumcision is a common practice between the ages of 6 and 8 years in Somalia [ 38 ].…”

Cognitive behavioral therapy for post‐traumatic stress disorder, depression, or anxiety disorders in women and girls living with female genital mutilation: A systematic review

“…Despite a comprehensive search, we could not find evidence assessing the effectiveness of CBT for PTSD, depression, or anxiety disorders in girls and women living with FGM. It appears that the majority of primary studies have focused on investigating the prevalence of the practice among different cultures, the physical and psychological complications associated with it, as well as the factors promoting this harmful procedure . Additional research on how to provide better psychological care for this population remains an important priority.…”