Purpose Women in Nepal face a heightened risk of poor mental health, with increasing evidence suggesting their social circumstances as key contributing factors. Yet, no research has explored how pressures to have children or achieve larger family sizes, embedded within Nepal’s highly pronatalist context, are associated with women’s mental health. In this context, the authors aimed to examine the association of pregnancy coercion with probable depression and symptoms of anxiety. Design/methodology/approach The authors used the 2022 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, which is a nationally representative data set. The authors applied logistic regression analyses to understand the association of pregnancy coercion with probable depression and symptoms of anxiety. Findings The authors found that 6% and 8% of women reported probable depression and symptoms of anxiety, respectively. The adjusted logistic regression analysis revealed that women who have experienced pregnancy coercion were more likely to report probable depression (aOR = 2.15, 95% CI = 1.52, 3.04) and symptoms of anxiety (aOR = 2.56, 95% CI = 1.80, 3.63) compared to women who have not experienced pregnancy coercion. Originality/value It may be especially important to develop a comprehensive and integrated mental health program aimed at women of reproductive age in Nepal. Part of this holistic approach may seek to empower women, specifically increasing their reproductive autonomy, where they are given greater power to decide on the number of children they desire to have. This can be approached from a human rights perspective, considering the association between pregnancy coercion and women’s exposure to depression and anxiety disorders.
Antabe et al. (Fri,) studied this question.