Investigating the Motivations of Mothers to Volunteer for Gestational Surrogacy: A Systematic Review Study

Abstract

A surrogate mother is a woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a child with the intention of donating the child to another person or couple. Surrogacy has become a new ethical challenge. Various factors such as economic issues, social stigma, consequences of pregnancy and the commercialization of this issue play a big role in the acceptance of surrogacy. The aim of the study was to investigate the motivations effective in accepting surrogacy by volunteer women. The keywords of “surrogate, motivation, volunteer, gestational, infertility” were searched for in studies published between 1970 and 2023 in reliable databases, resulting in 130 articles, of which 58 articles were reviewed. This review article searched for studies published by researchers from 1970 to 2023 in Scopus, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, as well as other jurisprudential texts using alternative keywords. Financial need and independence, social factors, the process of psychological compensation and restorative motives, resolving loneliness due to previous failures, resolving the internal psychological conflicts and compensatory movement, unresolved unconscious feelings, interest in experiencing a different type of motherhood (attachment or curiosity), empathy, altruism and spiritualism (commitment and care) are among the effective factors in surrogacy volunteering. The lack of supporting regulations for surrogate mothers and biological parents causes the profiteering of middlemen and commercial agencies. It is necessary to review the relevant laws in order to preserve human dignity and prevent the vulnerability of the surrogate.