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"If You Are Not Giving Birth, You Are Not Doing Anything": Negotiating Gendered Structures Regarding Contraception Among South Sudanese Refugees in Uganda

Höjer, Maya Sofia LU (2025) SIMZ21 20251
Graduate School
Abstract
Refugee women are particularly at risk of having their sexual and reproductive health and rights compromised due to a high unmet need for contraception. Through fifteen individual interviews in Pagirinya refugee settlement, Northern Uganda, this thesis documents the gendered structures regarding contraceptive usage among South Sudanese refugee women and how they negotiate these structures. The thesis finds that gendered norms, expectations and power imbalances within marital relationships fosters a restrictive sociocultural environment regrading women’s contraceptive usage. However, the thesis also shows that women can negotiate these gendered structures by accommodating rather than disrupting norms, expectations and power imbalances. This... (More)
Refugee women are particularly at risk of having their sexual and reproductive health and rights compromised due to a high unmet need for contraception. Through fifteen individual interviews in Pagirinya refugee settlement, Northern Uganda, this thesis documents the gendered structures regarding contraceptive usage among South Sudanese refugee women and how they negotiate these structures. The thesis finds that gendered norms, expectations and power imbalances within marital relationships fosters a restrictive sociocultural environment regrading women’s contraceptive usage. However, the thesis also shows that women can negotiate these gendered structures by accommodating rather than disrupting norms, expectations and power imbalances. This primarily occurs through secret contraceptive usage, support from friends and strategic communication regarding contraception. These findings suggest that policymakers should explore secret contraceptive usage as a strategy to fulfill women’s unmet needs, particularly in restrictive sociocultural environments regarding contraception. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Höjer, Maya Sofia LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMZ21 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Contraception, Refugees, Gendered Structures, Negotiation, South Sudan, Uganda, Pagirinya Refugee Settlement
language
English
id
9211915
date added to LUP
2025-09-19 13:38:09
date last changed
2025-09-19 13:38:09
@misc{9211915,
  abstract     = {{Refugee women are particularly at risk of having their sexual and reproductive health and rights compromised due to a high unmet need for contraception. Through fifteen individual interviews in Pagirinya refugee settlement, Northern Uganda, this thesis documents the gendered structures regarding contraceptive usage among South Sudanese refugee women and how they negotiate these structures. The thesis finds that gendered norms, expectations and power imbalances within marital relationships fosters a restrictive sociocultural environment regrading women’s contraceptive usage. However, the thesis also shows that women can negotiate these gendered structures by accommodating rather than disrupting norms, expectations and power imbalances. This primarily occurs through secret contraceptive usage, support from friends and strategic communication regarding contraception. These findings suggest that policymakers should explore secret contraceptive usage as a strategy to fulfill women’s unmet needs, particularly in restrictive sociocultural environments regarding contraception.}},
  author       = {{Höjer, Maya Sofia}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{"If You Are Not Giving Birth, You Are Not Doing Anything": Negotiating Gendered Structures Regarding Contraception Among South Sudanese Refugees in Uganda}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}