Psychological aspects of infertility among men

Men generally expect to become parents and view parenthood as fundamental to lifetime contentment and fulfilment. Consequently, for men infertility is experienced as a profound challenge to their identity and self-worth. Despite this, infertility care and research has typically focused on women, leading to a lack of awareness and understanding of the psychological and social aspects of infertility for men. Research in this area, although increasing, is still limited and often shows mixed results from data gathered predominantly from white heterosexual men from high income countries.

The research that is available demonstrates men to feel uninformed about fertility and fertility risk factors, their role in fertility, particularly treatment and to face stigma, isolation and distress. The psychological distress related to infertility has been shown to include anxiety, depression, and grief in response to infertility diagnoses, in addition to challenges in coping with treatment demands and outcomes, including adjusting to ending treatment without children. These challenges are compounded for men from minoritised communities and transgender women, who encounter additional barriers such as discrimination, heteronormative assumptions in healthcare systems and other systemic healthcare inequities.

This chapter highlights the need for inclusive, male centered psychological support throughout the infertility journey and calls for more research into the complex social and emotional experiences of diverse men facing infertility.