Familienplanung bei Migrantinnen in Graz - Wissen ... - Public Health

Abstract
Research background: People with migration background account for a significant proportion of
the population in many cities of Austria. Immigrant women form a large percentage of the
female population in Graz. The behavior, attitudes and decisions on family planning are
influenced by lack of knowledge, values and norms of original cultures and their personal
migration history. This master thesis deals with the question, on how the family planning is
influenced by migration.
Method: In the first part the theoretical foundation on migration, women's health and family
planning are explained. In the empirical part the results of the research for this Thesis (Survey
of 160 women with migration background in Graz) are presented. The target groups of the study
were girls and women 15-45 years of age who live in a partnership. The surveys were carried
out from July to November 2010 using a questionnaire. The central research question is the
significance of migration and its related problems for the individual family planning. It was
determined which methods of contraception migrant women use, which are the preferred
sources of information and how sufficient their knowledge of contraception is. Furthermore, the
data related to the number of children, the current wish of a child, and other social and cultural
factors related to the family planning were collected.
Results: The outcome of this study shows some correlation between migration and family
planning. Accordingly the number of children and the use of contraception are influenced by
cultural and social factors such as education, residence status in Austria and other factors. In
addition, the survey shows that there is a clear need for information about contraception for the
interviewed group of immigrants.
Discussion: The majority of women with migration background tend to encounter problems
regarding accessibility to necessary information and in relation to family planning services. The
barriers are linguistic, financial and cultural / religious backgrounds. Therefore, in addition to
language courses for immigrants, an increased opening of trans-cultural counselling centres and
institutions for better support for women as to their access to contraception is recommended.
Keywords: migration, migrants, family planning, contraception
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