The purpose of this study was to provide understanding of the meaning of the transition experiences of married immigrant women. Their conjugal lives were followed using the hermeneutics phenomenological method developed by van Manen: focusing on the m...
The purpose of this study was to provide understanding of the meaning of the transition experiences of married immigrant women. Their conjugal lives were followed using the hermeneutics phenomenological method developed by van Manen: focusing on the meaning of lived experience; existential investigating the phenomenon; reflecting; and writing with an hermeneutic phenomenology approach.
The participants of this study were 11 married immigrant women residing in K City who could communicate with Korean language. The data were collected between March, and September, 2008. through iterative face-to-face personal interviews.
The contents of the interviews were tape-recorded and their essential themes were drawn by using ‘line by line’ approach of reflection. The associated etymology and idioms, literature, and phenomenological documents were assessed to obtain greater insight into and better understanding of the experiences of transition of married immigrant women who had undergone pregnancy and childbirth.
The essential themes that were associated with the transition experiences of the participants' lives during pregnancy and childbirth were as follows: “entering a strange world filled with chaos and tension where they feel like outsiders” “being pregnant and giving birth in increasingly difficult times” “giving birth to a child, which strengthens them to persevere through painful life experiences” “receiving greater support from their families”
The participants described the distressing experiences that they endured during the early years of their conjugal lives. These included being disregarded as insignificant members of the husbands' families, falling into worse than expected economic conditions facing obstacles in adapting to the newly lifestyle the country of migration, communication difficulties arising from unfamiliarity with the local language, and living in an environment full of chaos and tension in an unfamiliar country, namely, Korea.
Dealing with pregnancy and childbirth added to the difficulties already being experienced by the immigrants during the process of transition. Further, experiences such as the coercive demands for pregnancy, preferences for a son, and the ill treatment of pregnant women leave the married immigrant women who were raised in a different culture with the feeling that they are merely instruments of human reproduction.
They were apprehensive of the unprepared pregnancy. Further, their lack of knowledge of the local language interfered with their procurement of satisfactory pre-delivery and post-delivery nursing care. Nonetheless, the pleasure derived from the arrival of a new baby afforded the mothers, some relief.
The birth of child provided positive energy that alleviated the painful reality of the lives of the pregnant immigrant women. The babies played an important role in laying the foundation of a new family-centered relationship with the husbands, who then became participants in the child-rearing process, and in the shaping of a stable relationship with neighbours.
Further, the participants emphasized that having children allowed them to integrate themselves into the Korean society and reaffirmed that their decision to immigrate was a positive one.
This study has the following implications. It contributes a deeper understanding of the essence of the transition experiences of married immigrant women who undergo pregnancy and childbirth after immigration. On the basis of this understanding, this study would be likely to highlight the importance of establishing an appropriate health and medicare systems and the expert network of nursing care for immigrant women.