ArticlePhilosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences2021
Male partner participation in maternity care and social support for childbearing women: a discussion paper.
Article in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers.
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Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed.
- Forced migrant fathers' experiences of pregnancy and childbirth: a hermeneutic phenomenological study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Article
- "As long as you are married you cannot protect yourself against syphilis": qualitative exploration of syphilis risk perception and antenatal care seeking among pregnant women in Uganda.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Beyond support: a qualitative exploration of the emotional and relational impact of male partner involvement in maternal healthcare in Ghana.BMJ public health · 2026Article
- Exploring Men's Perception of Participating in the Natural Childbirth Process: A Qualitative Content Analysis.International journal of community based nursing and midwifery · 2026Article
- Clinical and maternal factors related to father's involvement in pregnancy: a cross-sectional study.Revista brasileira de enfermagem · 2026Article
- Sesotho Women's Preferences for Male Partner Involvement During Antenatal Care and Delivery.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Husbands involvement in contraceptive decision-making in a northern Nigerian city.Contraception and reproductive medicine · 2025Article
- "Reviving neglected abilities: men's participation in making childbirth pleasant": a qualitative study.Reproductive health · 2025Article
- Partner involvement and emotional and informational support gaps as predictors of postpartum birth trauma symptoms: a multi-center cross-sectional study of 230 women at 42 days postpartum.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Exploring Empowerment in Group Antenatal Care: Insights from an Insider and Outsider Perspective.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- The Impact of Social, Cultural, and Identity-Related Factors on Delayed Childbearing: A Multi-Center Study.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2025Article
- Engaging husbands in a digital mental health intervention to provide tailored counseling for women experiencing postpartum depression: A mixed methods study in Nepal.SSM. Mental health · 2024Article
- Parents' Postnatal Sense of Security: A Concept Analysis.Nursing open · 2024Review
- Are We Getting Any Closer to Including Men and Boys in Sexual and Reproductive Health? A Multi-Country Policy Analysis on Guidance to Action in East and Southern Africa.International journal of sexual health : official journal of the World Association for Sexual Health · 2024Article
- Set aside-A qualitative study of partners' experiences of pregnancy, labour, and postnatal care in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic.PloS one · 2024Article
- Effectiveness of men in maternity health (MiM) intervention on male involvement in maternal health care to improve maternal health outcomes in Naypyitaw, Myanmar.F1000Research · 2024Article
- Policy and practices shaping the delivery of health services to pregnant adolescents in informal urban settlements in Kenya.Health policy and planning · 2023Article
- Access to support during childbirth?: women's preferences and experiences of support person integration in a cross-sectional facility-based survey.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Review
- Effects of Husband Involvement in Prenatal Care on Couples' Intimacy and Postpartum Blues in Primiparous Women: A Quasi-Experimental Study.International journal of community based nursing and midwifery · 2023Article
- Adverse neonatal outcomes and associated factors among mothers who gave birth through induced and spontaneous labor in public hospitals of Awi zone, Northwest Ethiopia: a comparative cross-sectional study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Article
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Abstract
Male partners/fathers are key support persons for many childbearing women and their involvement in pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum/postnatal period has beneficial effects on a wide range of outcomes related to maternal and child health and family wellbeing. Social support is implicated in the relevant causal pathway, but has received largely tangential attention in the public health literature. This discussion paper aims to reframe men's participation in maternity care as an opportunity to enhance their readiness and ability to provide social support to women, contributing to the debate on the definition and rationale for male partner involvement, and paving the way for further empirical work. I begin by presenting a theory of change illustrating the causal pathway leading from male partner participation, through the key intermediate step of social support, to improved health and wellbeing for women and children. I proceed by arguing that many people desire male partner participation in maternity care; however, in practice, this is often limited owing to cultural, social and institutional barriers. I use examples from the intervention literature to demonstrate how participation in care can boost men's motivation to support women and enhance their ability to do so by increasing their knowledge and skills. Finally, I draw up general implications for further male partner involvement programmes, suggesting that in order to achieve meaningful and sustainable gains, attention to design is crucial in order to avoid reinforcing patriarchal gender norms. Programmes should be implemented alongside other efforts to improve quality and promote woman-centred care. This article is part of the theme issue 'Multidisciplinary perspectives on social support and maternal-child health'.
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