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ATTITUDES TOWARDS FAMILY PLANNING AMONG THE WOMEN OF A NORTHERN AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY
Author(s) -
Reid Janice,
Gurruwiwi Maypilama
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1979.tb112167.x
Subject(s) - socioeconomic status , family planning , preference , psychology , demography , sociology , population , research methodology , economics , microeconomics
The results of a survey of the attitudes of 92 women from an Aboriginal community towards childbearing and family planning are presented. The majority of the women stated a preference for well‐spaced families of a size which enabled a mother to care adequately for her children. The respondents were almost unanimously in favour of the use, when desired, of Western contraceptive methods. One of the authors (JR) suggests that these attitudes reflect traditional norms of family structure, and that they are also based on a critical appraisal by the women of the community of the demands of caring for young children. These demands are exacerbated by a depressed socioeconomic environment.