Lobke Van Ryckeghem discusses in her brief write-up the social construction of (male) infertility.
Recently, Lobke attended the 4th International Fertility Nurses and Midwives Congress in Dubrovnik, focused on 'empowering men through fertility awareness'.
At the congress, she found herself mostly surrounded by andrologists, nurses, midwives, and psychologists, many of whom work in fertility clinics. Therefore, the event primarily focused on clinical and psychological approaches to infertility. However, sociological perspectives, such as the influence of stigma and cultural norms, were occasionally acknowledged, though they remained on the margins. This suggests that the integration between medicine and sociology is still in its early stages.
Søren Ziebe captured this tension well in his keynote lecture when he remarked, “It is irritating that our biology is not adapted to our lives now,” referring to the trend of delayed parenthood and age-related fertility decline. His statement underscores the need for interdisciplinary research, as biological realities are shaped by evolving social contexts. Yet, infertility is still predominantly viewed through a medical lens. This became evident when someone at the congress asked her why male infertility would be of interest to a sociologist.
This question prompted her to reflect on a fundamental, yet often overlooked issue: why is (male) infertility socially constructed? To elaborate on this, she has put together a brief write-up.
