He said, she said
How third-party presence shapes infertility reporting in couples
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8238367 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ester Lazzari (0000-0001-8789-4681, Vienna Institute of Demography), N Milewski (0000-0003-1272-8990, Federal Institute for Population Research), Jasmin Passet-Wittig (0000-0001-8572-4646, Federal Institute for Population Research) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Pages | 159-176 |
| Publication date | 2026-01-28 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Demographic Research (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1435-9871 • E-ISSN: 2363-7064 |
| Publisher | Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.4054/demres.2026.54.6 |
| OpenAlex | W7125844612 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 18 |
BACKGROUNDEstimating infertility prevalence at the population level is challenging and little is known about the factors that influence how individuals report it. OBJECTIVEWe assess whether third-party presence, such as that of a partner, influences the likelihood of reporting infertility among a sample of heterosexual couples.We also examine the consistency of responses between partners interviewed separately and evaluate whether third-party presence increases agreement or disagreement within couples. METHODSUsing data from the 2019 Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey, we apply descriptive statistics and logistic regression models to assess associations between third-party presence and (1) infertility reporting and (2) consistency of infertility reports between partners. RESULTSOverall, 10.1% of men and 16.1% of women reported infertility.When a third party actively influenced the interview, reported infertility increased to 16.7% among men and 21.4% among women.After adjustment for confounders, men interviewed in the presence of an influencing third party had more than twice the odds of reporting infertility, while women had 65% higher odds.Agreement on infertility between partners increased from 7.5% to 14.5% in men's interviews and from 7.1% to 13.7% in women's
Abortion · Infertility · MEDLINE · Population · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior · Reproductive Health and Technologies
The International Glossary on Infertility and Fertility Care, 2017†‡§
The experience of infertility
Interviewing When the Spouse Is Present
On Third Persons in the Interview Situation and Their Impact on Responses
The Impact of the Presence of Others on a Respondent's Answers to Questions
Unerwünschte Dritte beim Interview
Interviewer- und Situationseffekte in Umfragen
The Validity of Survey Responses
Effects of Spouse Presence During the Interview on Survey Responses Concerning Marriage
She Said, He Said, They Said
The Effect of Spouse Presence on Appraisals of Emotional Support and Household Strain
Interviewing Separately or as Couples? Considerations of Authenticity of Method
Sensitive questions in surveys
A dyadic approach to the study of perceived subfecundity and contraceptive use
And Then There Were Three
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |