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Chapter 5 - Parents’ and Offsprings’ Experience of Insemination Fraud

A Qualitative Study

from Part I - ‘DIY’ Donor Linking: Issues and Implications

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2023

By
Sabrina Zeghiche ,
Isabel Côté ,
Marie-Christine Williams-Plouffe  and
Renée-Pierre Trottier Cyr
Edited by
Fiona Kelly ,
Deborah Dempsey  and
Adrienne Byrt
Fiona Kelly
Affiliation:
La Trobe University, Victoria
Deborah Dempsey
Affiliation:
Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
Adrienne Byrt
Affiliation:
Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria
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Summary

The experience of families who resort to donor sperm conception has been rather well documented. However, how this experience unfolds in the context of insemination fraud is for the most part still unknown. The focus so far has been on the ethical principles this fraud violates and the reasons why it has not been criminally charged. This chapter presents the results of an exploratory qualitative study carried out with 13 Canadian participants who were victims of insemination fraud. With a focus on the experience of the discovery of the insemination fraud by parents and donor-conceived offspring, this chapter discusses the trajectory of this discovery, the emotions associated with it, and its disclosure to minor children. Although the experience varies according to the nature of the fraud, and the circumstances of its discovery, common patterns can be observed: shock, sideration and disbelief, feelings of being betrayed by the medical institution.

Keywords

Insemination frauddonor sperm mix-updonor-conceived offspringparents of donor-conceived peoplequalitative study
Type
Chapter
Information
Donor-Linked Families in the Digital Age
Relatedness and Regulation
 , pp. 85 - 100
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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