Battle over Birth

Nicole Thualagant, PhD, is Associate Professor and Head of Study in Critical Health Studies at Roskilde University, Denmark. She is also chairperson of the Danish Sociological Association and vice-chairperson in the Nordic Sociological Association. As a sociologist with an interest in the politics of life and the interrelations between policy and practice, she investigates how policies on birth care is developed, legitimized institutionally, and performed and negotiated in current society.ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5197-8979Katja Schrøder, RM, PhD, Head of Study of Master of Science in Health Science at the University of Southern Denmark. She is a research member of the Europe Regional Committee, International Confederation of Midwives. She was former President of The Danish Society of Midwifery (2018-2021). With a clinical background in midwifery, she has a strong interest in maternity care and women's reproductive health.ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-9100-7237

• Introduction: Childbirth in Dispute: An Introduction to the Contested Space, 1. Negotiating normalcy in birth policies: The case of the UK and Denmark, 2. Reproductive In/Justice? The Production of Ignorance in the Politics of Midwifery in Ontario, Canada, 3. Beyond One Place for Birth: Undoing Stratified Reproduction as a Route to Choice and Equity, 4. Navigating master narratives: imperative norms and polyphony in childbirth narratives, 5. Contested voices – hidden emotions: the insight from the polarised home birth debate, 6. The Politics of Normal Birth - Boundary Work and the Moralisation of Care in Indonesian Midwifery, 7. Conflicting birth care ideals within the profession of midwifery, 8. Expanding Midwifery Care in Ontario, Canada: Beyond Birth as a Contested Space, 9. Aiming for zero harm: Cultural drivers of overdiagnosis in medicalized birthing, 10. Boundaries of Birth, Medicine, and the Body: Toward a Theory of Obstetric Justice

'The revelation of diverse perspectives from different standpoints, will sharpen the readers motivation to understand the ongoing deliberations and debates about birth care and its contested space. As the narrative unfolds it’s important to remember that the esteemed knowledge of the person giving birth, places them at the centre of all care and decision making. Enjoy reading this fascinating book, that seeks to clarify and restore to its former space, the phenomenon of birth care and its complex biological, psychological, social, and cultural dimensions.'- Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent OBE, Chief Midwife, ICM'Polarisation of ideologies has become a key feature in research, analysis and service development in maternity care, hampering progress. This book provides a fresh perspective on the debate through a range of perspectives, disciplines, and national contexts. In seeking to break down current binaries, it provides an essential grounding for bridging the divides, and, potentially, opening up new spaces for optimising maternity care for all.'- Professor Soo Downe, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Lancashire'This diverse and multifaceted collection foregrounds dialogue, contestation, and dilemma in its exploration of childbirth across a range of transnational contexts. 'Good birth care' emerges as a political, cultural, and epistemic space in dynamic flux. Tracing the tensions inherent in normative concepts and frameworks, this edited collection seeks to intervene in binary thinking, and is a timely, nuanced, and valuable contribution to critical scholarship in the arenas of childbirth, maternity care, and reproductive justice.'- Dr Rachelle Chadwick, Senior Lecturer in Gender-based Violence, University of Bristol