Reproductive Health Psychology

This volume provides a comprehensive, up-to-date theoretical and empirical background to the psychology of reproductive health.

• Provides a life span perspective of the psychology of reproductive health and its disorders, from menarche to menopause and reproductive health in older age
• Focuses on issues of the individual's reproductive health experience, including reproduction, pregnancy, maternity, and birth, as well as conditions such as PMDD, dysmenorrhea, and events including pregnancy failure, and abortion
• Acknowledges the wider social context with discussions of poverty, inequality, educational and economic status, age, and urban versus rural access
• Addresses life style related factors, human rights to choice, information and access, fertility control and reproductive health regulation and health care services
• Illustrates topics with empirical data supported with tables and figures

Olga B.A. van den Akker is Professor of Health Psychology and head of Department at Middlesex University London. Since completing her BSc and PhD in Psychology, she carried out post-doctoral research at the Institute of Psychiatry and St. George's and St. Mary's hospitals London, and held senior academic posts at a number of other UK Universities. She currently carries out research into the health psychology of challenging reproductive behaviours.