Overview
Despite the fact that, statistically, women of low socioeconomic status (SES) experience greater difficulty conceiving children, infertility is generally understood to be a wealthy, white woman’s issue. In Misconception, Ann V. Bell overturns such historically ingrained notions of infertility by examining the experiences of poor women and women of color. These women, so the stereotype would have it, are simply too fertile. The fertility of affluent and of poor women is perceived differently, and these perceptions have political and social consequences, as social policies have entrenched these ideas throughout U.S. history. Through fifty-eight in-depth interviews with women of both high and low SES, Bell begins to break down the stereotypes of infertility and show how such depictions consequently shape women’s infertility experiences. Prior studies have relied solely on participants recruited from medical clinics—a sampling process that inherently skews the participant base toward wealthier white women with health insurance. In comparing class experiences, Misconception goes beyond examining medical experiences of infertility to expose the often overlooked economic and classist underpinnings of reproduction, family, motherhood, and health in contemporary America. Watch a video with Ann V. Bell: Watch video now. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz7qiPyuyiM).
Full Product Details
Author: Ann V. Bell
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Imprint: Rutgers University Press
Dimensions:
Width: 15.20cm
, Height: 1.30cm
, Length: 22.90cm
Weight: 0.286kg
ISBN: 9780813564791
ISBN 10: 0813564794
Pages: 192
Publication Date: 02 September 2014
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
Misconception is a welcome addition to the growing field of the social scientific study of reproduction. Bell is an excellent writer and presents new ethnographic data that focuses on the role of social class in the social construction of infertility. --Arthur L. Greil author of Not Yet Pregnant: Infertile Couples in Contemporary America (08/20/2013)
Exceptionally well written and vigorously researched, Misconception challenges common understandings of infertility. Bell illustrates how stereotypes of who should be mothers affect women s infertility experiences and exacerbate ingrained social-class inequalities. Misconception is sociological research at its best a must read! --Theresa Morris author of Cut It Out: The C-Section Epidemic in America (04/08/2014)
Author Information
ANN V. BELL is an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Delaware.
