Transcripts_Male Infertility.pdf

Patrilineality plays a significant role in determining and confirming an individual's family membership based on their father's lineage. However, despite the importance of patrilineality in some societies, male infertility—which contributes significantly to infertility and accounts for half of all cases—has emerged as a significant concern. Thus, the study explores societal reactions to male infertility in Krokobite, a suburb of Accra, which is a predominantly Ga-speaking and patrilineal society. The study adopted a qualitative approach, utilizing in-depth interviews (24), focus group discussions (9), and key informant interviews (3). The study's findings primarily attribute infertility to women, identifying blood incompatibility between couples as a contributing factor in some situations. The findings additionally show that men who are unable to have children or who delay having children face persistent teasing from their peers, who seek to encourage them to join the group of "responsible" men in society by having a child. The study further concludes that the concept of reproductive masculinity is evident in how participants regard males as fertile and less prone to reproductive harm. However, it does not show a significant relationship between reproductive masculinity and the role of fathers in identifying the cause of infertility in a relationship.

父系制度（Patrilineality）在基于父亲血统确定和确认个体的家族成员身份方面发挥着重要作用。然而，尽管父系制度在部分社会中具有重要意义，但男性不育（male infertility）已成为一个重大问题——它在不育症中占比显著，约占所有病例的一半。因此，本研究探讨了阿克拉郊区克罗科比特（Krokobite）社会对男性不育的反应，该地区是一个以讲加语（Ga-speaking）为主的父系社会。本研究采用定性研究方法（qualitative approach），通过深度访谈（24次）、焦点小组讨论（9次）和关键知情人访谈（3次）收集数据。研究结果显示，人们主要将不育归咎于女性，同时发现夫妻间血型不合（blood incompatibility）是部分情况下的促成因素。此外，研究结果还表明，无法生育或推迟生育的男性会受到同伴的持续调侃，同伴们试图通过让他们生育孩子来鼓励其加入社会中‘负责任’男性的行列。本研究进一步得出结论，生殖男性气质（reproductive masculinity）的概念在参与者的认知中有所体现——他们认为男性具有生育能力且不易受到生殖伤害。然而，研究并未发现生殖男性气质与父亲在确定伴侣关系中不育原因方面的角色之间存在显著关联。