Women's decision-making practices: from forced childlessness to voluntary childlessness

Abstract

The article examines the phenomenon of women choosing voluntary childlessness in the context of Kazakh society. The article employs both empirical and theoretical evidence, the article examines how vulnerable the choice of voluntary childlessness is to social stigma in Kazakh society, where "motherhood" is considered mandatory, and how this affects women's daily lives.

The study is based on a targeted quota sample of 15 women from Kazakhstan aged 20 to 55 who consider themselves voluntarily childless. The “snowbal” method was used to form the sample.

The practical significance of the research results is based on women's decisions regarding the factors contributing to childlessness: the advantages of voluntary childlessness, the reasons for choosing childlessness were considered. At the same time, the study showed the variability of women's decisions to be childless depending on their age, marital status, health, level of education, and professional activity. A deep understanding of the phenomenon of voluntary childlessness ("childfree") in Kazakhstani society gives grounds to assume that it is possible to change life scenarios based on childlessness, and in the process of development as a person, childlessness is replaced by the parameter of forming a traditional family and rethinking the image of the world.