Predictive Model for the Quality of Life of Infertile Men

Abstract

Purpose: This study explores factors influencing the quality of life of infertile men, and attempts to construct a structural model to predict their quality of life. Methods: Data was collected via questionnaires from 242 infertile male outpatients from 3 infertile clinics at general hospital urologist departments, with the subjects’ confidentiality was ensured. The self-reported questionnaires were collected for 7 months from February to August 2016 in the outpatient centers. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS/WIN 21.0 Program and Mplus 6.0 Program. Results: Hypothesis test of the quality of life as the endogenous variable identified infertility-related stress (β=-0.79, t=-9.41), depression (β=-0.20, t=-2.58), and spirituality (β=0.21, t=2.90) as statistically significant variables. Marital adjustment (β=-0.06, t=-0.69) and social support (β=-0.12, t=-1.79) were not statistically significant. The variables accounted for 84.1% of the variation. Conclusion: The results of the study show that infertility-related stress and depression have negative correlation, and spirituality has a positive correlation with infertile men’s quality of life. As such, there needs to be a development of practical and multi-faceted nursing intervention programs to control infertility-related stress and depression levels so as to sustain infertile men’s quality of life. © 2021 Park & Shin.