女大學生月亮杯使用意圖：以孟加拉與日本為例

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Menstruation is often viewed as a global taboo throughout societies regardless of scale and content, given that it is are not openly brought up in conversation in public. Menstruation taboo prevents individuals from engaging in debates and impedes the development of scientific research that would otherwise bring awareness to menstrual health. Menstruating individuals (MIs) have several options when it comes to the management of their menstrual health and it is their right to autonomy over their bodies. If MIs are not informed of all the menstrual product choices, they would not be aware of benefits of each choice and thus which product is best for their individualized needs. The knowledge about menstrual cups, usage, and marketing is low, especially in countries such as Bangladesh and Japan where the taboo situation is relatively more serious despite their developmental status. A menstrual cup is a multifunctional menstrual hygiene product (MHP) that is inserted into the vaginal cavity to collect menstrual fluids. University students are recognized as a demographic that has a high potential for behavioral change since they are at a formative and impressionable stage in their lives. This research seeks to collect data for multimodal analysis of Bangladeshi and Japanese women’s perceptions of menstrual cups and what attitudes and behaviors affect their likelihood of using menstrual cups. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a theoretical framework for the questionnaire development, this study aimed to explore menstrual cup use intention (MCUI) among female university students in Bangladesh and Japan while qualitatively analyzing associated factors. In the future, these findings can inform the development of tailored health education programs. Methods: The quantitative questionnaire was based on the literature with several goals including (1) taking a multimodal approach to menstrual health, (2) focusing on demographic of self-identifying MIs, (3) careful attention to lurking variables specific to sociocultural and ideological constructs, (4) mindfulness of intersectionality, and (5) application of TPB in the context of Bangladeshi and Japanese MIs. Data were collected through an anonymous online survey using Qualtrics as the survey platform. Participants were recruited via social media frequented by female university students (e.g., Facebook pages, Instagram) with searchable tags including menstrual cups, menstruation, female, etc. The minimal goal was set for 30 participants with an ideal goal of 600 participants per demographic. Samples were selected if meeting inclusion criteria i.e. (1) female, (2) must be aged 18-24 years old, (3) must be either one of the two nationalities, Bangladeshi or Japanese and (4) provide consent to participate in the research study. Data were all transcribed electronically from Qualtrics to Microsoft Excel to determine chi-squared values and odds ratios. The focus of this study was among Japanese and Bangladeshi menstruators based on the following perception outcomes: religious affiliation, resource accessibility, and education for menstrual cup benefit and risks. Rates of outcomes were assessed with both quantitative methods and qualitative discussion. Results: This study consisted of 144 subjects, and among them, 23 (16%) were menstrual cup users (MCUs) and 121 (84%) were non-menstrual cup users (NMCUs). This study found that variables such as high ATB scores, supportive SN, high PBC scores indicated higher MCUI among both MCU groups and in both countries. In addition, demographic variables such as parental education level influenced MCUI showing that MIs with parents that have completed higher education were more likely to use a menstrual cup in comparison to MIs with parents that had completed high school education or below. Conclusions: This study investigated MIs perceptions of menstrual cups in countries that were not previously explored before. Menstrual-related studies conducted in Bangladesh used to focus on rural areas, while this study gathered information from university female students in urban environments. In Japan, menstrual research had been often overlooked, and normally opinions of MIs from a developed country were not taken into consideration. This study has shown that MIs who had positive attitudes, a supportive social network, and a higher sense of control under constraining conditions had higher MCUI. Although the sample size was relatively small, the findings still have important implications to build on menstrual health education in each respective country and perhaps globally in both developing and developed countries.