“Informal” donation in reproduction: Risks and opportunities

The article considers motivation of users of the “informal” sperm donation services and the new social phenomenon of ‘co-parenting’ which is defined in the sociological context as a new model of parenting - when a child is raised by two parents who are not in a traditional marriage. This new social phenomenon is associated with the spread of assisted reproductive technologies, in particular gamete donation, which allows infertile couples and single people to realize their reproductive rights. At the same time, ‘third’ parents (donors) can be involved in both giving birth and raising a child. Co-parenting creates new social relations and transforms traditional institutions of family and parenthood, raising questions about the legal status, rights and responsibilities of all participants, and about the impact of such a parenting model on socialization. In the contemporary society, the problem of infertility can be solved with new reproductive technologies: in addition to the traditional search for donors (through reproductive clinics), an alternative method has recently become widespread - the search for a donor of gametes (reproductive cells) on specialized websites. “Informal” gamete donation reflects deep social-cultural shifts in relation to reproductive technologies, which generates changes in parenting models, ethical norms, social attitudes and values. The authors conducted an empirical study, the object of which was the database of one such website (N=2960). This study allowed to present a social-demographic profile of the user of specialized Internet resources for finding a partner for joint childbirth in Russia, and the main motives of male donors and female recipients were identified. The results indicate the need for the improved access to formal donor programs and programs involving third parties in the parenting project, for the development of ethical standards regulating practices of “informal” sperm donation, and for further research to identify social, ethical and psychological consequences of “informal” sperm donation and effective strategies to eliminate negative consequences of this practice.