Title

Beyond Control: Body And Self In Women'S Childbearing Narratives

Keywords

Body; Childbirth; Control; Pregnancy; Self

Abstract

In the United States, childbearing is often conceptualised as a time when women lose self-control over their bodies. This project examines issues of bodily control through a social constructionist analysis of in-depth interviews with 18 predominantly white, working and middle class women who have recently given birth in the US. Findings indicate that many participants construct themselves as both in and out of control of their bodies during childbearing. Participants also describe body/self relationships in ways that transcend power and control, perceiving the body as autonomous, accommodating and collaborating. Accommodating and collaborating bodies were described here only among participants who gave birth in the midwifery model of care. The findings illuminate various ways of conceptualising the body and point to the use of different bodily discourses by women who give birth in medical and midwifery models. © 2010 The Author. Sociology of Health & Illness © 2010 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness/Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Publication Date

11-1-2010

Publication Title

Sociology of Health and Illness

Volume

32

Issue

7

Number of Pages

993-1009

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9566.2010.01261.x

Socpus ID

78149233736 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/78149233736

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