A woman but not a mother: social regulation and the experiences of voluntarily childless women in Türkiye

Voluntary childlessness remains a socially contested life choice in pronatalist contexts where womanhood is strongly associated with motherhood. This study examines how voluntarily childless women in Türkiye experience social expectations, normative judgements, and emotionally framed persuasion within the broader framework of gender regimes. Drawing on secondary qualitative data, the study analyses in-depth interviews with 18 voluntarily childless women living in İstanbul and Ankara. Data were examined through thematic analysis. The findings show that participants' experiences are shaped by three interconnected dynamics: temporal pressure organised around a socially constructed reproductive timeline; normative evaluations that equate femininity with motherhood; and emotionally framed persuasion practices that encourage childless women to reconsider their decision. Participants reported that remaining childfree was often interpreted as incompleteness, deviation, or delayed normality, requiring them to justify their reproductive choices in everyday interactions. These pressures rarely appeared as direct coercion; rather, they operated through subtle warnings, moral evaluations, and narratives of regret, loneliness, and fulfilment. The study highlights how reproductive decisions are socially regulated within pronatalist gender regimes in contemporary Türkiye.