title: Family formation in the inner city: low-income men's perception of their role in unplanned conception and pregnancy prevention.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Research documents the importance of partners in women's contraception use, pregnancy prevention/planning, and decision-making around unintended pregnancy. Little is known of men's perceptions of this crucial role.
  
  
  METHODS
  Semi-structured, in-depth interviews (n=20) with low-income, inner-city men, aged 18-45 years, who had brought about a pregnancy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Responsibility framed men's understanding of their reproductive and parenting roles. Uniformly, men equated being responsible with providing financially for their families. Interpretations of being responsible evolved over men's reproductive lifetimes, influencing their perceived role in planning or preventing pregnancy, and consideration of abortion for unplanned pregnancies. The desire to take responsibility for children they fathered was limited by the structural realities of these men's lives, which were often characterized by poverty, unemployment, violence, and crime.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Though financial responsibility is highly valued, poverty and related social factors are significant barriers to men's ability to achieve this goal. Discussions with men about family planning should reflect these realities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Social Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10467, USA.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karasz
authors.forename: Marji
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gold
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003267:Contraception / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005193:Family Planning Services; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City; D010465:Perception; D011203:Poverty; D011247:Pregnancy; D049168:Pregnancy, Unplanned / Q000523:psychology*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012380:Role; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult