Across The Generational Divide: Exploring Stigmas About Voluntarily Childless Women In Hawaiʻi

Abstract

This research study examines the reactions to and perceptions of childless men and women to determine if the stigma of remaining a voluntarily childless woman is persistent across generations in a unique and diverse community when compared to the needs of a global niche community. Based on Halford’s 2006 research on failed account episodes in disclosures of childlessness by men and women and building on a preliminary study examining discourse about childless individuals in social networking sites and general perceptions toward childless individuals, this study seeks to evaluate the degree to which stigmas about the decision to remain childless could be considered failed accounts and the degree to which religion, age, and other factors impact perceptions of childless individuals, especially childless women.