Background: More than 200 million females worldwide live with some form of female genital mutilation [FGM]. While reinforcing social and cultural values for those, to whom the practice is normative, FGM also envelops psychological as well as physical lifelong consequences. Aim: This literature study aimed to describe women's experiences of living with female genital mutilation from a physical, psychological, social and cultural perspective. Method: A literature study was performed through collecting and analysing ten qualitative articles. The data consisted of narratives of migrant women that had undergone FGM and lived in Western societies. The analysis was performed according to Friberg's five-step-model. Results: Feelings of honour and shame were expressed in connection to FGM. FGM was understood to fortify belonging to cultural identities and establish social acceptance linked to cultural ideals of femininity. Emotional and physical pain made women feel incompleteness, challenging their social relationships, including sexual intimacy. Additionally, it was noted that healthcare professionals lack specific knowledge needed while caring for those women, leaving them hesitant in further seeking healthcare. Women's perception of FGM changed after migration. They experienced larger control over their lives but also insecurity towards the discontinuation of the practice. Conclusion: FGM and its implications were complex and resulted in consequences that affect women's life. Greater knowledge and understanding of FGM were identified as necessary on the healthcare system, strengthening and furthering the required support and information for women's health.

Female genital mutilation is a deep rooted tradition that occurs in many parts of the world. Immigration has increased the number of genital mutilation within the country's borders. Genital mutilation can present problems both physically and mentally. The student health department in Linköping municipality actively works to educate schoolchildren about genital mutilation. They need a brochure which will be available to school nurses in their work and in waiting rooms in connection with the school nurses' reception in primary and secondary schools in Linköping. This work is about practicing principles of visual rhetoric and information design, in order to inform about genital mutilation as well and motivate they in need, to seek help. Interviews, tests and theories have resulted in a design proposal for the brochure. / Kvinnlig könsstympning är en djupt rotad tradition som förekommer i flera delar av världen. I och med invandringen har antalet könsstympade inom landets gränser ökat. Könsstympning kan innebära problem både fysiskt och psykiskt. Elevhälsans medicinska del i Linköpings kommun arbetar aktivt med att upplysa skolungdomar om könsstympning. De är i behov av en broschyr som ska vara tillgänglig för skolsköterskor i deras arbete samt i väntrum i anslutning till skolsköterskornas mottagning i grund- och gymnasieskolor i Linköping. Det här arbetet går ut på att praktisera principer för visuell retorik och informationsdesign, i syfte att informera om könsstympning samt mana drabbade att söka hjälp. Intervjuer, utprovningar och teorier har resulterat i ett designförslag till broschyren.

Magister Legum - LLM

No description available.

This study intends to analyze the causes of the high prevalence of the practice of female genital mutilations (FGM) in Sudan, Nigeria, and Iraq. For the attainment of this objective, the researcher had used the secondary data collection and the qualitative data analysis method. The results of the study indicate that the factors of culture, religion and society are the three most important ones which had directly contributed towards the high prevalence of FGM in the different developing nations like Sudan, Nigeria and Iraq among others. More importantly, the results also indicate that the practice of is an attempt on the part of the male dominated society of these nations to not only control the sexuality of the women but of almost all the aspects of their life. Furthermore, this ritual while adversely affecting the wellbeing as well as the health of the women and the girls is a gross violation of the human rights or the basic fundamental rights of the girls and the women. In addition to these, it had been seen that although the different nations of the world like Sudan and Iraq in the recent years had taken the help of various measures, legislations and others but they have failed to help these nations to effectively reduce the high prevalence of FGM. However, in the relation mention needs to be made of the nation of Nigeria which in the recent years had been able to reduce the prevalence of FGM by more than half through the usage of adequate implementation and monitoring strategies for the effective usage of the different legislations, regulations and others related to FGM. This as a matter of fact has important implications for the nations like Iraq and Sudan since they also have the option to reduce the high prevalence of FGM in their territory through the usage of similar measures. Lastly, the study recommends the usage of adequate implementation, monitoring and evaluation strategies for the legislations, regulations and others related to FGM, empowerment of women and the spread of required awareness regarding the harmful effects of FGM on the health and the wellbeing of the women for reducing the high prevalence of the same. / <p>Due to Convid 19 the presentation was virtual. </p>

ABSTRACT “FGM is known to have no health benefits and has serious, immediate and long-term physical and psychological health consequences, which can be severe, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety and reduced desire or sexual satisfaction” (28 Too Many, 2014, p5). This master thesis is an attempt to gain male perspectives in strategies to eradicate Female Genital Mutilation, FGM. The aim is to gain an understanding on how men view the concept of FGM in relation to existing norms such as gender, social and international norms. Literature tends to focus less on men’s roles and views compared to on women´s for how to end FGM. The male perspective is very important especially as literature shows that cultural practices in most cases benefit men compared to women as is shown in the case of FGM. Men are held in high esteem as the ones with a final deciding voice in the homes, institutions and the general community. This was also the case in the village of Mabonkani. Men hold powers to enable or prohibit actions and practices.  Therefore, if FGM is to end, men can, because of their positionality spearhead effective campaigns and awareness raising messages. Focus groups and interviews were used to obtain information. The empirical findings were analysed and categorised and then presented in tables, graphs and themes. The findings revealed a conflictual decision making that men face if/when they decide to abandon FGM as it is heavily tied to their cultural and social identity. Abandoning the practice also means that they face ostracism by their own community members, loss of identity as a family man and community member, breaking up social cohesion among other reasons. Men are keen on ending FGM after lengthy discussions on its complications at a personal and social level. Men expressed that they preferred the training of women than the removal of clitoris. They offered various solutions including sending girls to schools to address issues of informed consent/age as well as getting young people to be more involved in and to include all actors instead of picking just a few. The views of household men and youth were different. The youth embraced international norms. They suggested that it is up to them to change the future of the next generation through the information available and they no longer claim ignorance about FGM as was the case earlier.  All men interviewed cited challenges of identity, ostracism by their own community and lack of national laws to support their actions. The analysis looked at the human rights approach, how local communities can be influenced to abandon traditional harmful practices in favour of international norms that will promote gender equality and breakdown structural and systematic norms that discriminate.

A considerable amount of scholars, researchers and international actors have labeled the practise of female genital mutilation (FGM) a social norm, a large majority of these have failed to consider why they have made such a classification. This thesis investigates whether considering FGM a social norm is justifiable. This is done by applying the practise to Cristina Bicchieri’s model for diagnosing collective behaviour. The material which is used include quantitative data derived from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), as well as qualitative data in the form of previously conducted interviews. The social norms theory, and secondary analysis as a method, are used. Applying the practise of FGM to Bicchieri’s model showed that FGM fulfills the criteria suggested by the model which indicates that a collective practise is a social norm, which led to the conclusion that FGM can be justifiably considered a social norm.

This paper aims to shed light on the intersex infant, a baby born with an unclear gender. The main goal of the paper is to discuss whether unnecessary gender normalizing surgeries on infants, also called intersex genital mutilation (IGM) that is not necessary to preserve the life or physical health of the infant is in the best interest of the child. Legal method will be used to frame the topic in a legal context and discourse analysis in combination with content analysis will be applied in order to understand the transformation of intersex, from being a social emergency to becoming a human rights issue. The use of the concept, the best interest of the child will serve as an analytical framework together with a theoretical framework consisting of queer theory. Together it will help to map out the human rights challenges regarding IGM as a socially constructed medical product that needs to be highlighted and prevented in order to secure the rights of the child. Hopefully, the concluding results will contribute to further awareness on the issue of unnecessary infant intersex surgery and frame it in a human rights context.

Magister Public Health - MPH / This study analyses media representations of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) in two Ugandan daily English newspapers. FGM/C is recognized by the World Health Organization as an extreme form of violation of the rights, health and integrity of women and girls. In Uganda, although the overall prevalence of FGM/C is 0.3 percent of the population, FGM/C remains a harmful practice that constitutes a serious threat to the health of women and girls in communities that practice it. Despite existence of a national legal and policy framework that discourages FGM/C, progress in the eradication of the practice remains slow.

Bakgrund: Världshälsoorganisationen uppskattar att 200 miljoner kvinnor lever med könsstympning världen runt. Könsstympning är en traditionell procedur som ger omfattande komplikationer för kvinnans kropp och psyke samt kränker mänskliga rättigheter. Den grundutbildade sjuksköterskan har huvudansvaret för omvårdnaden och bör erbjuda kvinnan god personcentrerad vård. Därmed är kunskap om olika aspekter av könsstympning nödvändig. Syfte: Att undersöka hur kvinnor som blivit könsstympade upplever mötet med hälso- och sjukvården avseende bemötande, kunskap och stöd. Metod: Allmän litteraturöversikt baserat på 9 kvalitativa vetenskapliga artiklar från databaserna Pubmed och CINAHL. Resultat: De könsstympade kvinnornas upplevelser utmynnades i nio subkategorier;“Positiva upplevelser av mötet med sjukvården”, “Negativa attityder från sjukvårdspersonalen”, “Upplevelsen av att känna sig annorlunda och som ett studieobjekt”, “Sjukvårdspersonalens kunskap om könsstympning,” “Sjukvårdspersonalens brist på kunskap, “Information om möjligheter och risker”, “Språket - en tillgång eller ett hinder”, “Anpassat stöd” och “Bristande stöd”. Resultatet visade ett behov av ytterligare teoretisk och praktisk utbildning inom könsstympning och även en utökad kulturell medvetenhet för att förbättra hanteringen av denna patientgrupp. Slutsats: Könsstympade kvinnor upplevde en trygghet när sjukvårdspersonalen toghänsyn till kvinnornas behov och hanterade mötet väl. Trots detta var de negativa upplevelser mest framträdande, dessa baserades på sjukvårdspersonalens bristande kulturell kompetens och kunskap om könsstympningen samt kommunikationssvårigheter. I takt med den ökade migrationen till Europa förväntas denna patientgrupp att öka, därmed behövs ytterligare forskning och utbildning inom detta fält för att förbättra vården för könsstympade kvinnor. / Background: World health organisation estimates that 200 million women are living with genital mutilation around the world. Female genital mutilation is a traditional procedure that causes extensive complications for the woman's body and mind and is a violation of human rights. The basic trained nurse has the main responsibility of the nursing care and should provide the woman with good patient-centered care. Therefore, knowledge about the different aspects of genital mutilation is necessary. Aim: To explore genital mutilated women’s experiences of the encounter with healthcare regarding approach, knowledge and support. Method: A literature review based on 9 qualitative scientific articles from the Pubmed and CINAHL databases. Result: The women’s experience culminated nine subcategories; “Positive experiences of the encounter with healthcare”, “Negative attitudes from the healthcare professionals”, “Theexperience of being different and being a subject of study”, “The healthcare professionals’ awareness regarding gender mutilation”, “The healthcare professionals lack of knowledge”, “Information regarding possibilities and risks”, “The language- a resource or an obstacle?”, “Customized support” and “Lack of support”. The results of this study demonstrated legitimate arguments for the necessity of broader understanding and training for health care professionals in order to improve the management of this patient group. Conclusion: Women with female genital mutilation experienced comfort when healthcare professionals took their needs into account and handled the encounter well. Regardless, the negative experiences were most prominent. These were based on healthcare professionals’ lack of cultural awareness and knowledge about genital mutilation as well as difficulties in communication. Due to the increased migration from countries where female genital mutilation is practised this patient group could be expected to increase in European healthcare, therefore more research and education within this field is needed in order to improve the care for genital mutilated women.