On the Margins of the Periphery: Unassisted Childbirth and the Management of Layered Stigma

Abstract

This article examines an unusual practice—unassisted childbirth—and the ways in which advocates and practitioners manage the stigma they are accorded. Given their “doubly deviant” status as not only women who birth at home but also as women who choose to give birth without professional assistance, these women provide a unique case for our theoretical understanding of stigma management. As members of homebirth social networks, the women must reckon with what I term layered stigma, the broad stigma of homebirth as well as the deeper in-group stigma within their deviant community that results from their rejection of midwives as appropriate care providers. By examining the dynamics of stigma management among practitioners of unassisted childbirth, I highlight the complex, situation-dependent nature of stigma and the impact of its management on women's sense of self.

Acknowledgments

An earlier version of the article was presented at the 2008 Southern Sociological Society's annual meeting. The author wishes to thank Julie Reid and Dana Fennell for their comments on earlier drafts of the article, and Tom Shriver provided invaluable critique and guidance on revision of the manuscript.

Notes

¹Most women interviewed either do no prenatal care or do all their own care—taking their blood pressure, analyzing their urine, tracking fundal growth, and even monitoring heart rate with a hand-held Doppler monitor.