Socioeconomic Factors and the Formation of Mental Images of Infertile Women: An Anthropological Study

The study aims to identify the factors of social and economic status in shaping the image of infertile women among those around them from the husband's family, and the negative and positive impact of infertility on women in shaping their stereotypical image. The study relies on the anthropological approach with its tools such as the field work guide and interviews with (15) female respondents and informants.                                
The study showed that there are two different images of infertile women within society, depending on the different factors of the social and economic status of infertile women. The first image rejects the stereotype about infertile women due to a set of social and economic status factors that distinguish them, such as university education and tangible social support from their husbands and families through financial assistance and assistance with daily tasks, in addition to moral and informational social support. In addition to work and income for infertile women, as it gives them strength and independence, which increases their status, as they contribute their income to household expenses, they represent a second breadwinner, especially for couples who suffer from economic uncertainty (unemployment and low income). In addition to the financial ability to bear and manage the cost of treatment, which is linked to the class disparity between families, and thus the association of childbearing with class, especially among women who are secondary infertile. However, social and economic status factors contribute to improving their image among those around them from the husband’s family, so they do not get divorced. This confirms that female infertility is not a stigma; it is an issue that should not be attributed to the woman, thus rejecting the stereotype of stigmatizing infertile women.                                               
The study showed that the second image is the stereotype, which is represented by the negative impact of the first infertility on women of low socio-economic status, as they suffer from a low educational level and economic uncertainty. The negative impact is evident in verbal abuse, popular proverbs, polygamy and divorce. The study also showed the role of kinship between spouses in reducing verbal abuse through popular words and proverbs and divorce among women with primary infertility, while it may lead to acceptance of polygamy. Finally, the study revealed that there is a positive impact for divorced women with primary infertility, as they have a marital preference among divorced or widowed men who have had children from their previous marriages, which leads to shaping and improving their stereotypical image among those around them.