Study of the factors associated with the attitude of society towards perinatal losses

Markman Elena V.

In modern society, the discussion of perinatal losses and the issues associated with them belongs to closed and taboo topics. Discussion of the topic of death is limited both in the family and in the system of providing psychological assistance to the population. Spontaneous abortion during pregnancy and stillbirth are considered less significant events than the death of a live birth. The success of psychological support during the experience of perinatal loss affects the improvement of the mental health of women who have experienced such losses, and, therefore, contributes to an improvement in the quality of life and the solution of demographic problems facing society. The author examines the differences in attitudes towards perinatal loss between men and women. An overview of domestic and foreign modern studies is presented, reflecting the severity of this problem. An analysis of scientific works and studies in the field of perinatal losses showed that empirical data on the attitude of men and women to perinatal losses are practically absent. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the study of age and sex characteristics of attitudes towards perinatal losses; as well as the peculiarities of society's attitude to various types of perinatal losses. The methodological basis of the study was the theoretical provisions on loss as a psychological trauma by F. Ruppert, D. Kalshed, L.V. Trubitsyna, N.V. Tarabrina, J. Bowlby, S. Rubin. The study sample consisted of women and men aged 19-40 years (M = 36). The study used the author's questionnaire aimed at studying the attitude of society towards perinatal loss. The results of an empirical study of attitudes towards perinatal losses and types of psychological assistance are presented. The prospect of further research is aimed at exploring strategies for overcoming perinatal loss chosen by women who have experienced such a loss, and creating a program to provide psychological support after the loss.

Keywords:perinatal loss, grief, miscarriage, miscarriage, psychological trauma