The Road to Visibility: IVF and Motherhood Journey of Filipino Influencers

Samuel I. Cabbuag*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

Childbearing via in vitro fertilization (IVF) was taboo for a long time in the Philippines despite being available in the Philippines since 1996 and the signing of the Republic Health Law back in 2013 (Dupont, 2013). In this chapter, the author examines how IVF is imagined, presented, and accepted in the Philippine context by looking at selected case studies of Filipino influencers who opted to bear children via IVF. The author explores these through analyses of selected YouTube videos and Facebook posts through the lens of visibility labor which refers to the activities done by influencers to “the work enacted to flexibly demonstrate gradients of self-conspicuousness in digital or physical spaces depending on intention or circumstance for favourable ends” (Abidin, 2016). The author also examines the comments sections of these selected videos and posts through web scraping to get a glimpse of the reception to the journeys and struggles of these public figures. The author argues that through the visibility labor of influencers, the phenomenon of childbearing via IVF is not only promoted as a viable, if not acceptable procreative process, but also perpetuated as an in/accessible procedure in the Philippines.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationResilience and Familism
Subtitle of host publicationThe Dynamic Nature of Families in the Philippines
EditorsVeronica L. Gregorio , Clarence M. Batan, Sampson Lee Blair
Place of PublicationLeeds
PublisherEmerald Publishing
Pages21-34
Number of pages14
ISBN (Electronic)9781804554142
ISBN (Print)9781804554159
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 10 Aug 2023

Publication series

NameContemporary Perspectives in Family Research
Volume23
ISSN (Print)1530-3535

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Social Psychology
  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Sociology and Political Science

User-Defined Keywords

  • Visibility labor
  • IVF
  • Influencer cultures
  • Motherhood journey
  • Attention economy
  • Digital cultures
  • Philippines

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The Road to Visibility: IVF and Motherhood Journey of Filipino Influencers'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this