Perceptions of Successful Ageing Among Iranian Elders: Insights From a Qualitative Study.

The aim of this article is to explore the perceptions of successful ageing among Iranian elderly. The data were collected in Tehran city on 60 older adults using a semistructured interview. The collected data were analyzed using directed content analysis. The findings revealed various dimensions of successful ageing among Iranian older adults. Social well-being is the most prevalent dimension of successful ageing, followed by psychological well-being, physical health, spirituality and transcendence, financial security, and an elder-friendly environmental and social context. Also, the findings from this study provide a new understanding of successful ageing in the context of Iran and contribute additional elements. This qualitative study highlights the importance of multidimensional and contextual viewpoints to successful ageing. In conclusion, to achieve multidimensional successful ageing, the interaction between all levels of successful ageing such as individual, family, and environment must be considered.

Consanguineous marriage, reproductive behaviour and postnatal mortality in contemporary Iran.

OBJECTIVES: The aims of the study were to determine the prevalence, types and socio-economic correlates of consanguineous marriages in Iran, and to gauge the extent to which consanguinity influenced fertility, pregnancy outcomes and the expression of genetic disorders in the present-day population. METHODS: Data on the prevalence of consanguinity and birth outcomes in the first marriages of 5,515 women were abstracted from the 2005 Iran Low Fertility Study [Hosseini-Chavoshi et al: Fertility and Contraceptive Use Dynamics in Iran: Special Focus on Low Fertility Regions. Canberra, Australian National University, 2007]. The results of associated socio-economic variables were collated and assessed by Pearson's χ(2) analysis and logistic regression. RESULTS: Overall, 37.4% of the marriages were consanguineous (α = 0.0149), but with major differences between 4 representative populations. Consanguinity was higher among rural couples, older marriage cohorts, women marrying at a younger age, and women with lower levels of formal education. In general, consanguineous couples had higher mean numbers of pregnancies, live births and surviving children. CONCLUSIONS: Given declining family sizes, a rapid urbanization and increased educational and employment opportunities, it seems inevitable that consanguineous marriages will decline in prevalence in Iran, albeit more slowly in more traditional rural communities. Predictably, there will be a concomitant reduction in the incidence of recessive genetic disorders, but this is against a background transition from communicable to non-communicable diseases.

Social and psychological consequences of abortion in Iran.

Iran has had replacement fertility since 2000. Upholding a small family size has led some couples to terminate unwanted pregnancies. Abortion is, however, permitted only on medical grounds in Iran. Using data from the Iran Low Fertility Survey, this study assessed sociodemographic correlates of abortion among a random sample of 5526 ever-married women aged 15-54 years, and used in-depth interviews to explore reasons for and psychological consequences of abortion among 40 women who had experienced an unintended pregnancy. Although social and economic concerns were the main reasons cited for seeking abortion, women experienced anxiety and depression when seeking pregnancy termination and thereafter. Social stigmatization arose from a belief that abortion is sinful and that misfortune experienced thereafter is punishment. Inadequate knowledge and misunderstanding of relevant Sharia laws discouraged women from seeking care when they experienced complications. Iran's reproductive health policies should be revised to integrate pre- and postabortion counseling.

Family planning and fertility decline in rural Iran: the impact of rural health clinics.

During the first few years of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, and aided by pro-natal government policies, Iranian fertility was on the rise. In a reversal of its population policy, in 1989, the government launched an ambitious and innovative family planning program aimed at rural families. By 2005, the program had covered more than 90% of the rural population and the average number of births per rural woman had declined to replacement level from about 8 births in the mid 1980s. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of a particular feature of the program - health houses - on rural fertility, taking advantage of the variation in the timing of their construction across the country. We use three different methods to obtain a range of estimates for the impact of health houses on village-level fertility: difference-in-differences (DID), matching DID, and length of exposure. We find estimates of impact ranging from 4 to 20% of the decline in fertility during 1986-1996.

Modernization or cultural maintenance: the practice of consanguineous marriage in Iran.

Consanguineous marriage has been the culturally preferred form of marriage in Iran. This paper examines the extent to which education, urbanization and changes in modes of economic production have affected the incidence of consanguineous marriage and attitudes towards consanguineous marriages. The 2002 Iran Fertility Transition Survey conducted in the four provinces of Gilan, Sistan and Baluchistan, Yazd and West Azarbaijan provides information on the degree of relationship of marriage partners from around 6550 ever-married women aged 15-49. Attitudinal data were also obtained. Overall, the level of marriage to biological relatives ranged from 23% in Gilan to 78% in Sistan and Baluchistan. The paper finds that the practice of marriage to biological relatives has remained surprisingly resilient in the face of modernizing influences and that ethnicity, province and area of residence remain important determinants. On the other hand, attitudes have shifted towards marriage with a non-relative. Anthropological research would illuminate the processes of consanguineous marriage in Iran.