Correlates of Knowledge of Ovulation Cycle among Women in Urban Poor Communities in Accra

Abstract

This study uses the Urban Health and Poverty Survey (2011) data to investigate the correlates of knowledge of ovulation cycle among women in urban poor communities in Ghana. Knowledge of the ovulation cycle of a woman is pivotal in the practice of the traditional methods of delaying childbirth and preventing unwanted pregnancies. These methods include periodic abstinence (rhythm), withdrawal, and country-specific folk methods. Bivariate analysis shows Catholics have the highest proportion of respondents with good knowledge of their ovulation cycle. Again women who were in a union were more likely to have correct knowledge of the ovulation cycle than women who were not in any union. Multinomial logistic regression was employed to analyze all the socio-demographic characteristics in a pool against the dependent variable (Knowledge of ovulation cycle of women). The results showed that women with women with primary level education were more likely to have correct knowledge of their ovulation cycle than women secondary and higher education and could be as a result of the fact that these women may be using the natural method unlike educated women who may prefer modern contraception and so, will have ample time to learn about ovulation through cultural socialization. Religion, education, marital status, occupation, locality and education were the major correlates of a woman’s knowledge of her ovulation cycle. However, age, ethnicity and parity were surprisingly not strongly associated with women’s knowledge of their ovulation cycle