Rural women's experiences and perceptions of marital sexual relationships

The objective of this study was to understand rural women's attitude towards sex, the ways in which married women communicate their desire for sexual intercourse and their sexual experiences in marital relationships. Data was gathered using qualitative research approaches from married women (15-49 years) from eight villages, about 25 km outside Vadodara, Gujarat. Repeated in-depth interviews (average five interviews per informant) were conducted with a sample of 69 women reporting a current reproductive morbidity. Besides focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews (KIIs) were also conducted with community members. The results show that women did not have a negative attitude towards sex and described it as a necessity for "happiness" or "pleasure" and "a means of procreation" as well as "a wifely duty". Most of them stated that they were sexually happy and satisfied. Though the sexual act was usually initiated by their husbands, women openly expressed their desire for sex verbally and/or through various physical gestures and were willing participants in sexual intercourse with their husbands. However, there was considerable underreporting with regard to the extent of their premarital and extramarital relationships, a practice that seemed to be rampant as revealed by the FGDs and KIIs. Although repeated in-depth interviews were useful in penetrating into the closely guarded area of women's sexual behaviours within the preview of marital domain, it was difficult to get information on extramarital sexual practices that are perceived to be sinful and a taboo among conservative rural communities. The study suggests that women are not passive partners in their marital sexual relationships and they are empowered to some extent in matters related to sexual interaction. They can be involved in condom promotion programme to promote safe sex practices. Policies and programmes aimed at improving reproductive and sexual health of women need to encompass parallel information from men and adolescents in the community to obtain a holistic view of the extent of risk practices in rural communities. Interventions should be planned keeping in view the sociocultural diversity that exists with regard to sexual communication and interaction in different regions rather than accepting the general belief of women's "powerlessness" to negotiate safe sex practices.