Abstract

This qualitative study draws on the ecological theory and the context-informed perspective to explore the experience of being in a situation where there is a contradiction between the societal expectations of childbearing and the wish to obey Islamic ruling that prohibits third-party gamete donation. We conducted face-to-face interviews with twenty-five Sunni Muslim women who underwent third-party gamete donation treatments in two Middle Eastern countries. Results show that the interviewees decided to embark on fertility treatments involving third-party gamete donation because of the familial and sociocultural pressure to bear children, and the wish to preserve family integrity and marital harmony and continue the family lineage. They keep this treatment a secret and tell no one, nor do they intend to tell their children that they are donor-conceived offspring. Interviewees also expressed a subversive attitude toward the religious authorities and the Islamic fatwa (ruling) that prohibits third-party gamete donation. This study contributes to the scholarship of family relationships the understanding that in some contexts, when facing a conflict of priorities between family and religion, individuals may prefer to give the family priority over obedience to religious dictates.

摘要

这项定性研究利用生态学理论和背景信息的视角来探索在社会对生育的期望与遵守禁止第三方配子捐赠的伊斯兰统治之间存在矛盾的情况下的体验。我们对在两个中东国家接受第三方配子捐赠治疗的 25 名逊尼派穆斯林妇女进行了面对面访谈。结果表明，受访者决定进行涉及第三方配子捐赠的生育治疗是因为生育孩子的家庭和社会文化压力，以及维护家庭完整性和婚姻和谐以及延续家族血统的愿望。他们对这种治疗保密，不告诉任何人，他们也不打算告诉他们的孩子他们是捐赠者怀孕的后代。受访者还表达了对宗教当局和伊斯兰教徒的颠覆态度禁止第三方配子捐赠的法令（裁决）。这项研究有助于家庭关系的学术理解，即在某些情况下，当面临家庭与宗教之间的优先事项冲突时，个人可能更愿意将家庭置于服从宗教命令之上。