Methods of control: An anthropological analysis of fertility regulating technologies in Urban China.

摘要

Urban Chinese women's views on fertility regulation and reproductive health more broadly are the topics of this dissertation. In urban China, the one-child policy is strictly enforced and most urbanites accept the policy as necessary for China's economic development and modernization. Despite the ready availability of high-tech effective contraceptive methods, urban Chinese women have high rates of abortion. In this dissertation, I analyze data from in-depth interviews with 22 urban Chinese women, reproductive health hotline calls, and articles from the popular media to explore this contradiction. Dominant discourses about women's reproductive physiology drawn from the popular media reveal the theme that women's bodies are problematic and out-of-control. Demographic policies and official propaganda campaigns focus on women as the primary targets for fertility control, marital harmony and social and sexual order. These messages contain contradictions for women who are required to control their fertility, yet optimize their reproductive outcomes to improve “population quality.”; In the face of contradictory and misogynistic dominant discourses, Chinese urban women strive to maximize their reproductive health options. Most women maintain a reproductive health framework that is consistent with basic principles from Traditional Chinese Medicine, which negatively affects their views of high-tech contraceptives such as hormonal methods and intra-uterine devices. Many report poor reproductive healthcare conditions, including a lack of skills and negative attitudes of healthcare providers, which may discourage solicitation of regular reproductive healthcare, including contraception consults. Abortion is also perceived to present health risks, women fear the pain of the procedure, and there is some social stigma attached to it under certain circumstances. However, there is a culturally appropriate recovery process to counter-act the physical harm incurred from an abortion. The data indicate that although women's actions are constrained by rigid demographic policies and oppressive gender norms, women are not simply passive victims of the one-child policy and its strict abortion requirements, but variously resist, accommodate and conform to dominant discourses and policies. The significance of the Chinese national modernization project, and international efforts to encourage improved reproductive health services and outcomes for women globally, are also explored.