Liability of Unwed Mothers

Abstract

Aims: Being unwed mother is a status which is culturally sensitive in Malaysia since it is against the religious principles and cultural approval of major ethnicities in Malaysia. Therefore, current study was designed to investigate the relationship between coping strategies and psychological profile unwed mothers. Study Design: A cross section questionnaires were administered among unwed mothers by using purposive sampling method. Then, semi-structured interview sessions were conducted to gain clear understanding on former quantitative survey results. Place and Duration of Study: The subjects were recruited for a six-month duration of study from two different Non-Governmental Organization Guidance Centres for Women namely “Raudhatus Sakinah Centre” and “Dar Assa'adah Centre” as well as those who had visited the General Hospital of Kuala Lumpur for a treatment. All three locations of study situated at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Methodology: A total of 48 unwed mothers were interviewed, in which majorities were Malays. A standard demographic questionnaire was administered, followed by Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) for the screening of stress, anxiety and depression. Then, Coping Scale for Adults (CSA-28) was used to identify the coping skills strategies among the unwed mothers. Finally, the data from semi-structured interviews, audio taped and transcribed verbatim were analysed by using thematic content analysis software, while the quantitative survey data were analyzed using SPSS 19.0 software. Results: Anxiety (41%) is the highest prevalence screened, which is also considered to be higher than the western population. A significant relationship between productive coping strategies used by unwed mothers with their psychological wellbeing also obtained. This is further supported by other exploratory factors from qualitative interview such as not interested in academic, seeking for attention and love, family conflict, and social support from their family members and staffs from rehabilitation centers. Conclusion: The current study suggests that the percentage of anxiety is higher among unwed mothers in Malaysia compared to single mothers in other studies on western population. Our findings manifested a positive correlation between productive coping with poor depression and anxiety. Interestingly, some qualitative exploratory factors might support these findings. For instance, most of the unwed mothers studied are still receiving social support from family and friends despite their unacceptable behaviour especially in the Malay community. However, a small number of them reported not receiving any supports from the community institutions in which they were located during their remedial intervention.