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A
Male Involvement
Values Clarification Activity for Staff
An important
first step in initiating a male involvement program is to assess the values
and attitudes of staff members around young men's involvement in family
planning and reproductive health. Program planners can go through great
efforts to set up their facilities and programs to work with men, but
the program can quickly fail if staff members are uncomfortable or ambivalent
about working with young men. In order to assess an organization's readiness
and comfort toward initiating a male involvement program, staff members
need a forum to ask questions and address fears and concerns about the
program. Conducting a values clarification activity can provide insight
into the current state of mind of staff members while allowing programmers
to allay fears before program implementation.
- Prepare
signs that read "AGREE," "DISAGREE," and "UNSURE"
- Place
"AGREE," "DISAGREE," "UNSURE" signs along a wall in a continuum as shown
below :
- Move
tables and/or chairs so that participants can walk from one side of
the continuum to the other.
- Explain
to participants that "the purpose of this exercise is to help you explore
your own values and attitudes towards male involvement in family planning."
- Ask all
of the participants to stand in the middle of the room under the UNSURE
sign.
- State
to participants "I am going to read you a series of statements about
men and family planning. After listening to the statement, decide if
you agree, disagree, or are unsure about the statement -- then move
to the side of the room which matches your response. You'll have an
opportunity to discuss or clarify your decision."
- Encourage
participants to share their reasons for their response if they so desire.
If participants seem to all take a stand on one side of the issue, present
a reason why someone might have a value that differs from the participants.
- Go through
as many statements as you like, leaving time to discuss the questions
below.
- How did
it feel to take a stand on these statements?
- Were
any statements easier or harder to take a stand on?
- How did
it feel to acknowledge a value that differed from someone else's? How
did it feel to share values with other people?
- How might
our values and attitudes affect our ability to serve male clients?
- What
strategies can we use when our values differ from those of our male
client?
- How do
our values support or hinder our male involvement work?
- What
can we do to overcome values that hinder our work?
- Our values
and attitudes can sometimes affect our ability to provide services to
clients.
- Most
men can and do want to get involved in family planning and disease prevention.
Values
Clarification Statements about
Young Men and Reproductive Health
- Young
men often lie about their sexual history.
- Young
men should date women who are close in age to them.
- Young
men, regardless of their age, should have access to condoms if they
are sexually active.
- Even
if you provide young men with comprehensive reproductive health services,
they will have little interest in using them.
- Family
planning will always be more important for a young woman than a young
man because she is the one who can get pregnant.
- Many
family planning and reproductive health care professionals are uncomfortable
counseling or providing services to young men.
- Young
men are uncomfortable going to a female-oriented health facility or
being treated by a female clinician.
- Sometimes
young women send mixed messages to young men about sex which can sometimes
lead to forced sexual activity or rape.
- Young
men who engage in unprotected sex deserve to get an STI.
- Young
men should not be allowed in family planning facilities during the same
hours as young women.
- Young
men are a major part of the problem of unintended pregnancies.
- Young
men with STIs do not seek treatment and will often pass the disease
to their partners.
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