Gender and social controversies of in vitro fertilization in Serbia: Discrimination against childless women

Abstract

This paper analyses gender and social controversies of assisted reproductive technologies and the discrimination of childless women in Serbia. Primary goals of this paper are critical analysis of new reproductive technologies phenomenon, discrimination against women without children and critical analysis of the legal framework regulating biomedical assisted reproduction in Serbia from gender studies and feminist methodology perspectives, as well as presentation of the research results on discrimination of childless women. For the purpose of this research the survey and the content analysis have been used. A survey was conducted of 50 female participants in the in vitro fertilization program at the Department for Gynecology and Obstetrics in Novi Sad. The results indicate that the regulations on biomedical assisted reproduction and the criteria for inclusion in the in vitro fertilization program are discriminatory and that women involved in the program feel discriminated against, usually at work and in their own surroundings. The conclusion is that it is necessary to change the regulations governing this area, further work on the elimination of discrimination against childless women and destigmatisation of women and couples that cannot or do not want to have children.

Keywords

• assisted reproductive technologies
• discrimination
• infertility
• in vitro fertilisation
• feminism