Social Support and Hopelessness in Women Undergoing Infertility Treatment in <scp>E</scp>astern <scp>T</scp>urkey

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the social support and hopelessness in women undergoing infertility treatment in eastern Turkey. DESIGN AND SAMPLE: For this descriptive design study, the sample was composed of 456 women. MEASURES: Beck's Hopelessness Scale (BHS) and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) were used. Percentile, correlation, unpaired t test, and one-way analysis of variance test were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The mean BHS score was 6.97 ± 3.64, with a range of 0-19 while the mean MSPSS score was 61.98 ± 16.05 with a range of 12-84. A negative correlation (r = -.336, p = .000) was noted between MSPSS scores and BHS scores. CONCLUSIONS: Hopelessness levels in women negatively correlate with reported level of social support. Informing health professionals about these issues will be an important step toward improving the quality and levels of social support given to women undergoing infertility treatment.