Choice and Patterns in Midwife Use in the United States

Abstract

This study explores the factors that influence women’s decisions about their pregnancy and birth, what kinds of value and beliefs tend to suggest a preference towards midwives, and, demographically, which women are mostly likely to obtain midwife care. By examining these tendencies, as well as the ways in which authoritative knowledge and social and structural contexts interact with one another, anthropologists can gain a better understanding of how women think about and make decisions regarding their birth attendant. One portion of the study focuses on broad demographic patterns across the United States, using the 2017 Public Use Natality File, collected and released by the CDC. The second section focuses on more individualized and personal concerns, including qualitative data from interviews with eight women that focus on why they made the choices they did during their most recent pregnancy and birth. I suggest that, with this new understanding, there are ways in which practical access to midwifery care and information about their options can be increased and improved for women who want to choose the care of a midwife.