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Motives for having or not having children: a comparison between questionnaire and interview methods
Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynaecology
|December 1, 1995
Summary
This study validates a questionnaire on childbearing motives by comparing it with interviews. The combined method effectively captures sensitive data, confirming its utility for emotional topics.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Psychometrics
- Sociology
Background:
- Exploring personal decisions about having or not having children involves sensitive, private, and emotionally charged motivations.
- Existing research often relies on self-reported data, necessitating robust validation methods for accuracy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the validity of a questionnaire designed to explore motivations for having or not having children.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of combining factor analysis-derived themes with structured interviews for sensitive topics.
Main Methods:
- Factor analysis was used to identify key themes from a reference population's questionnaire data.
- These themes structured conversational interviews with a smaller sample.
- Factor scores from the questionnaire were compared against interview data.
Main Results:
- The study successfully validated the questionnaire by comparing its factor scores with interview findings.
- The combined methodology proved effective in gathering informative data on childbearing motives, even with predominant emotional factors.
- The findings underscore the importance of supplementary validity studies for questionnaire-based research.
Conclusions:
- The validated questionnaire, combined with structured interviews, offers a reliable method for exploring complex reproductive decisions.
- This approach enhances data accuracy in emotionally sensitive research areas.
- Further research is needed to explore additional facets of reproductive decision-making identified through this methodology.