GUEDES, Maryse; CARVALHO, Paula Saraiva; PIRES, Raquel    CANAVARRO, Maria Cristina. Uma abordagem qualitativa às motivações positivas e negativas para a parentalidade. []. , 29, 4, pp.535-551. ISSN 0870-8231.

The decrease of birth rates and the postponement of the first child have emphasized the importance of a better understanding of parenthood motivations. Given their sociocultural variability, this qualitative study aimed to explore positive and negative parenthood motivations among a Portuguese sample. The sample was constituted by 24 participants, who were recruited among the professionals and patients of the Maternidade Doutor Daniel de Matos dos Hospitais da Universidade de Coimbra and among participants of general population. Three focus groups with patients/participants of general population and one focus group with professionals were conducted. The content analysis revealed a vast constellation of positive and negative parenthood motivations; these were expressed in emotional/ psychological, social/normative, economical/utilitarian and biological/physical dimensions. Positive motivations were the most frequently reported; however, they were less reported than negative motivations in the emotional/psychological dimension. These exploratory results tend to be consistent with existing research; nevertheless, they tend to show some particularities that need to be explored in future researches. Furthermore they emphasize the importance of assessing parenthood motivations, especially among women who reveal emotional difficulties.

: Negative motivations; Parenthood; Positive motivations.

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