Social-economic determinants of women’s reproductive health in Almaty (Kazakhstan)

In the Almaty metropolitan area with the significant social-economic stratification, the relevance of the study is determined by the need to understand how household income affects women’s reproductive strategies and identity. The article aims at identifying the relationship between subjective well-being, financial difficulties, family plans and reproductive health symptoms of 18-49-year-old women in Almaty. The authors conducted a cross-sectional quantitative survey on a multi-layered random sample with face-to-face interviews (N=320 women from eight districts of the city. Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation analysis, regressions, factor and cluster analyses revealed a positive correlation between financial difficulties and postponing a childbirth in the next 3-5 years, a negative correlation between well-being and physical discomfort, and a positive correlation between family plans and seeking medical help. Women with children are significantly more likely to report reproductive symptoms, which indicates the need for a better postnatal care. Household income is a key determinant of both specific reproductive decisions (timing and planning of childbirth, seeking medical care) and reproductive identity formation. The study combined quantitative methods with an emphasis on subjective assessments of well-being and analysis of health symptoms, which allows for assessing the targeted support measures: development of free and mobile services for low-income women, postnatal monitoring programs and educational campaigns on reproductive health under the social inequality in Almaty.