‘If I go with him, I can't talk with other women’: Understanding women's resistance to, and acceptance of, men's involvement in maternal and child healthcare in northern Ghana

• Published in: Social science & medicine (1982) Vol. 166; pp. 195 - 204
• Main Authors: Ganle, John Kuumuori, Dery, Isaac, Manu, Abubakar A., Obeng, Bernard
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2016; Pergamon Press Inc
• Subjects: Acceptance; Adolescent; Adult; Attitudes; Child care services; Childbirth & labor; Children; Family Characteristics; Family Conflict - psychology; Fathers - psychology; Female; Focus Groups; Gender role differentiation; Gender roles; Gender stereotypes; Ghana; Health care; Health services; Humans; Male; Maternal & child health; Maternal and child health; Maternal-Child Health Services - utilization; Men's involvement; Middle Aged; Mothers; Mothers - psychology; Opinions; Participation; Patriarchy; Perception; Perceptions; Pregnancy; Qualitative analysis; Qualitative research; Resistance; Sex roles; Stereotypes; Ghana; Patriarchy; Maternal and child health; Men's involvement; Gender roles; Ghana; Gender role differentiation
• ISSN: 0277-9536; 1873-5347
• DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.08.030

Men's involvement in maternal and child healthcare especially in patriarchal societies such as Ghana is increasingly being advocated. While a number of studies have been conducted to explore men's views on their involvement, few studies have examined the perspectives of childbearing women. Based on qualitative focus group discussions that were conducted between January and August 2014 with a total of 125 adult women in seven communities in the Upper West Region of Ghana, this paper examines women's perspectives on men's involvement in maternal and child healthcare. Findings suggest that although many women recognised the benefits of men's involvement, few actually supported greater male involvement. The majority of women expressed negative attitudes and opinions on the involvement of men. These negative attitudes and opinions were framed by three broad factors: perceptions that pregnancy and child care should be a female role while men should be bread winners; women's desire to avoid negative stereotyping; and fears that men's involvement may turn hitherto secure social spaces for women into insecure ones. These narrative accounts largely challenge current programmatic efforts that seek to promote men's involvement in maternal and child healthcare, and suggest that such male involvement programmes are less likely to succeed if the views and concerns of childbearing women are not taken into account. •Examines women's perspectives on greater male involvement in maternity care.•Develops a framework of spectrum of male involvement along the continuum of maternal healthcare.•Describes the extent to which different types of male involvement in different care situations are desirable by women.