Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy

Radu, Irina; Gouilhers, Solène; Hammer, Raphaël; Meyer, Yvonne; Pehlke-Milde, Jessica

Publication type:	Conference other
Type of review:	Not specified
Title:	Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy
Authors:	Radu, Irina Gouilhers, Solène Hammer, Raphaël Meyer, Yvonne Pehlke-Milde, Jessica
et. al:	No
Conference details:	14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019
Issue Date:	Aug-2019
Language:	English
Subject (DDC):	300: Social sciences 618: Gynecology, obstetrics and midwifery
Abstract:	From a public health perspective, alcohol has been constructed as an important risk factor for fetal health during the pregnancy period. This is reflected in public health guidelines, which in many European countries advise abstinence during pregnancy. Women’s own perceptions of alcohol as risk during pregnancy however, are varied and practices range from abstinence to occasional or regular alcohol consumption. In our study, which focuses on expecting couples living in Switzerland, we aim to understand the way that pregnant women and their male partners perceive this risk and how they construct the boundaries between “harmful”, “risky” and “safe” daily habits. To this end, we used a rare methodological set-up among studies on risk and pregnancy: we conducted separate interviews with both partners of 46 couples, in the Lausanne and Zurich areas. Based on a thematic analysis, our findings indicate that pregnancy is a transition period during which boundaries around health risk-assessment emerge within the couple, with women tending to take on the responsibility for the fetus’s health, seeking information on everything from prenatal screenings to diet and alcohol consumption. We identified three ideal-types concerning women’s risk perception and alcohol consumption during pregnancy, with the women’s information-seeking behavior playing an important part in shaping risk perception. Furthermore, we found that male partners take on a supportive role during this stage, enforcing the women’s strategies of risk diminution – a dynamic, which can lead to an early solidification of gender roles in child rearing.
URI:	https://digitalcollection.zhaw.ch/handle/11475/18402
Fulltext version:	Published version
License (according to publishing contract):	Licence according to publishing contract
Departement:	School of Health Sciences
Organisational Unit:	Institute of Midwifery and Reproductive Health (IHG)
Published as part of the ZHAW project:	Paare und ihre Wahrnehmung des Alkoholkonsums während Schwangerschaft und Stillzeit: eine soziokulturelle Annäherung an ein „gewöhnliches Risiko“
Appears in collections:	Publikationen Gesundheit

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Radu, I., Gouilhers, S., Hammer, R., Meyer, Y., & Pehlke-Milde, J. (2019, August). Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy. 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019.

Radu, I. et al. (2019) ‘Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy’, in 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019.

I. Radu, S. Gouilhers, R. Hammer, Y. Meyer, and J. Pehlke-Milde, “Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy,” in 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019, Aug. 2019.

RADU, Irina, Solène GOUILHERS, Raphaël HAMMER, Yvonne MEYER und Jessica PEHLKE-MILDE, 2019. Couples’ construction of boundaries of risk and responsibility during pregnancy. In: 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019. Conference presentation. August 2019

Radu, Irina, Solène Gouilhers, Raphaël Hammer, Yvonne Meyer, and Jessica Pehlke-Milde. 2019. “Couples’ Construction of Boundaries of Risk and Responsibility during Pregnancy.” Conference presentation. In 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019.

Radu, Irina, et al. “Couples’ Construction of Boundaries of Risk and Responsibility during Pregnancy.” 14th ESA Conference: Europe and Beyond: Boundaries, Barriers and Belonging, Manchester, United Kingdom, 20-23 August 2019, 2019.