Social and Psychological Support of Couples in Treating Infertility (Case Study of the Polish Research)

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly 60–80 million couples worldwide struggle with infertility – inability to conceive a child without medical assistance. Infertility is a relevant medical, social, socio-psychological, and demographic problem that negatively affects the demographic situation across the world. In this regard, assisted reproductive technologies help. Infertility diagnosis and treatment is a lengthy and burdensome process, and patients need socio-psychological support while going through it. The purpose of the study is to analyze the situation with the treatment of infertile couples using assisted reproductive technologies in the Republic of Poland and the Russian Federation in the context of the perception of socio-psychological support provided to couples (case study of the Polish research). We used sociological methods: in particular, the author’s own questionnaire and R. Schwarzer and U. Schulz’s test psychological methodology for assessing a respondent’s subjective perception of socio-psychological support. The study involved 39 couples treated for infertility. The majority of respondents (27 couples; 69%) were married. Most female (32 women; 82%) and male (31 men; 79%) respondents did not have children. The results showed that women need more support than men: women received more statistically significant points on the “support-seeking” scale. According to the study, support of a family and a partner were assessed highly. It was revealed that social and psychological support during infertility leads to a positive effect that provides acceptance of the disease (infertility) and reduces stress and a feeling of a loss. Moreover, social and psychological support has a significant impact on the prevention of mental disorders among people treated for infertility. We conclude that socio-psychological support is important for patients diagnosed with this problem

Keywords

social support, infertility, infertility treatment, perception of support