Between personal and social matters: identifying public perceptions of childfree decisions in Indonesia

The decision of couples or individuals to not have any children or to be childfree has recently stirred up heated controversy in Indonesia, especially after some prominent social media influencers endorsed views regarding the benefits of choosing to be childfree. This endorsement led to various debates as to whether childfree is considered an appropriate decision, specifically in a society such as Indonesia. We conducted this study to explore Indonesians' perceptions in general towards childfree decisions through qualitative research. We collected responses from 53 participants aged 20-59 recruited online through various social media platforms. We limited our participants to a minimum age of 19, which was considered mature enough to have well-informed opinions regarding marriage and reproductive health issues. Findings were developed through thematic analysis and examined childfree decision making dynamics with a focus on knowledge, personal opinions, attitudes towards being childfree, stigma towards childfree people, and comparisons by gender. Implications and areas for future research are discussed.