Following the Views of Young Former Conservative Laestadian Women on Reproductive Freedom, Procreational Ethos, and Pronatalist Politics
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Qualitative interview study; level assigned by design analogy (non-clinical scholarship).
OpenAlex W4306168761 · doi:10.1080/08038740.2022.2129780
What was done
The author conducted conversational interviews in the spring of 2021 with young former Conservative Laestadian women in Finland to examine their perspectives on reproductive freedom, religious procreational rules, and pronatalist politics.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative metrics. Qualitatively, the author observed resistance among young former members against the Conservative Laestadian movement's procreational ethos (which enforces premarital abstinence and prohibits contraception), and noted thematic parallels between this religious ethos and nationalist pronatalist agendas.
Why it matters
The study provides qualitative insight into how women leaving strict pronatalist religious groups negotiate bodily autonomy, reproductive justice, and opposition to institutional restrictions on birth control.
Limits
The abstract does not report the sample size, recruitment method, or interview structure. Findings rely entirely on qualitative self-reports from former members, introducing potential selection bias, and are specific to the Finnish Conservative Laestadian context.
Cited by
- context Laestadians maintain a fertility rate of five to six children per woman while experiencing an attrition rate of 30% to 40% outside the sect.