Gillespie, B., Balen, J. orcid.org/0000-0002-4736-8465, Allen, H. et al. (2 more authors) (2022) Shifting social norms and adolescent girls' access to sexual and reproductive health services and information in a South African township. Qualitative Health Research, 32 (6). pp. 1014-1026. ISSN 1049-7323
Abstract
Despite policy on adolescent sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and education, teen pregnancies remain common in South Africa. Social norms and cultural resistance are a well-documented challenge for SRH program implementation in South Africa, and beyond. To gain insight on the complex picture of adolescents’ access to SRH information and services in a peri-urban township, we explored this topic from a diversity of perspectives, carrying out 86 interviews to capture perceptions of adolescents, their parents, community members, and health professionals. Our research shows that despite the taboo nature of the issue of adolescent SRH, individual positions on adolescent access to SRH services and information are shifting and diverse, and are influenced by factors other than cultural norms. This research serves as a reminder to avoid simplistic reference to “culture” as a way of explaining health-related behaviors and people’s responses to health challenges.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2022 The Author(s). This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). |
Keywords: | Adolescent; Female; Humans; Pregnancy; Pregnancy in Adolescence; Reproductive Health; Reproductive Health Services; Sexual Behavior; Social Norms; South Africa; adolescent pregnancy; adolescent-friendly services; cultural resistance; sexual and reproductive health; South Africa |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Health and Related Research (Sheffield) > ScHARR - Sheffield Centre for Health and Related Research The University of Sheffield > Sheffield Teaching Hospitals |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number National Institute for Health Research NIHRDH-17/63/26 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 14 Jun 2022 11:39 |
Last Modified: | 14 Jun 2022 11:39 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE Publications |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/10497323221089880 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:187953 |