Home-insemination: The Motivations and Experiences of Same-sex and Gender Diverse Couples Using Self-insemination and Known Donors to Conceive in Aotearoa New Zealand
Date
Authors
Fyfe, Angela
Goedeke, Sonja
Du Preez, Elizabeth
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
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Volume Title
Publisher
Informa UK Limited
Abstract
Donor conception that occurs outside of clinical fertility settings is understood to be increasingly common, yet research on this practice remains limited. Drawing on interviews with eleven participants, this study explored the motivations and experiences of same-sex and gender diverse couples who used known donors and home insemination methods to conceive. While participants were parents of children conceived after the introduction of the Human Assisted Reproductive Technology [HART] Act (2004) in Aotearoa New Zealand, conception outside regulated settings meant they were not subject to the medical, ethical, or legal procedures implicit within fertility clinics. Four main themes were identified (1) Finding the ‘ideal donor’- participants sought donors who were ‘good’ people; known donors were chosen to enable relational processes and facilitate ongoing connections, (2) Home insemination - perceived as affordable, personal, and offering greater agency; though revealing potential relational awkwardness, (3) Relationship planning/envisaged relationships: not the ‘donor dad’ - participants constructed donors as ‘helping uncles’ or extended family members with ongoing, contracted roles, (4) Lack of and need for knowledge, understanding and relevant support for self-insemination using known donors. This study highlights the need for accessible, evidence-based resources and psychosocial support to benefit and protect all donor conception stakeholders.Description
Keywords
1103 Clinical Sciences, 1114 Paediatrics and Reproductive Medicine, Obstetrics & Reproductive Medicine, 3215 Reproductive medicine, Donor conception, sperm donation, self-insemination, home insemination, known donors, LBTQ+
Source
Human Fertility, ISSN: 1464-7273 (Print); 1742-8149 (Online), Informa UK Limited, 28(1). doi: 10.1080/14647273.2025.2572997
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© 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.