Reclaiming A Sacred Domain: An Ethnographic Study of Mormon Women Overcoming the Media-Supported Message of Acceptable Birth Practice Through Giving Birth at Home

• Main Author: Witt, Celeste Elain
• Format: Others
• Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 2000
• Subjects: Childbirth at home; home birth; United States; Mormon women; Attitudes; Childbirth; Public opinion; Mass media; Influence; Mormon Studies; Women's Studies
• Online Access: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/5223; https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6222&context=etd

This study ethnographically explores the experiences of 30 American Mormon women who chose to give birth at home, a practice which differs from the culturally expected birth practice supported by most media birth scenes. The dominant birth practice among American Mormon women aligns with the biomedical birth system nearly universally practiced in the United States. Recent research indicates that the biomedical model is supported by most media portrayals of birth (Elson 1997b). Mormon women who had given birth at home with a midwife were located and invited to participate. A semi-structured interview guide was used to frame the research process. Verbatim transcriptions of the interviews provided the raw data for coding and analysis.