Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy?
The commercial availability of ultrasound scans for pregnant women has been controversial yet little is known about why women make use of such services. This article reports on semi-structured interviews with women in the UK who have booked a commercial scan, focusing on the reasons women gave for b...
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| Format: | Article |
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Wiley
2015
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/29772/ |
| _version_ | 1848793850572701696 |
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| author | Roberts, Julie Griffiths, Frances E. Verran, Alice Ayre, Catherine |
| author_facet | Roberts, Julie Griffiths, Frances E. Verran, Alice Ayre, Catherine |
| author_sort | Roberts, Julie |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | The commercial availability of ultrasound scans for pregnant women has been controversial yet little is known about why women make use of such services. This article reports on semi-structured interviews with women in the UK who have booked a commercial scan, focusing on the reasons women gave for booking commercially provided ultrasound during a low-risk pregnancy. Participants’ reasons for booking a scan are presented in five categories: finding out the sex of the foetus; reassurance; seeing the baby; acquiring keepsakes and facilitating bonding. Our analysis demonstrates that women's reasons for booking commercial scans are often multiple and are shaped by experiences of antenatal care as well as powerful cultural discourses related to ‘good’ parenting and the use of technology in pregnancy. Sociological and public debate about the availability of commercial ultrasound and its social and personal impacts should consider the wider sociocultural context that structures women's choices to make use of such services. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:06:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-29772 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:06:51Z |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-297722020-05-04T20:08:57Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/29772/ Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? Roberts, Julie Griffiths, Frances E. Verran, Alice Ayre, Catherine The commercial availability of ultrasound scans for pregnant women has been controversial yet little is known about why women make use of such services. This article reports on semi-structured interviews with women in the UK who have booked a commercial scan, focusing on the reasons women gave for booking commercially provided ultrasound during a low-risk pregnancy. Participants’ reasons for booking a scan are presented in five categories: finding out the sex of the foetus; reassurance; seeing the baby; acquiring keepsakes and facilitating bonding. Our analysis demonstrates that women's reasons for booking commercial scans are often multiple and are shaped by experiences of antenatal care as well as powerful cultural discourses related to ‘good’ parenting and the use of technology in pregnancy. Sociological and public debate about the availability of commercial ultrasound and its social and personal impacts should consider the wider sociocultural context that structures women's choices to make use of such services. Wiley 2015-05 Article PeerReviewed Roberts, Julie, Griffiths, Frances E., Verran, Alice and Ayre, Catherine (2015) Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? Sociology of Health and Illness, 37 (4). pp. 594-609. ISSN 0141-9889 Ultrasound Pregnancy http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9566.12218/abstract doi:10.1111/1467-9566.12218 doi:10.1111/1467-9566.12218 |
| spellingShingle | Ultrasound Pregnancy Roberts, Julie Griffiths, Frances E. Verran, Alice Ayre, Catherine Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title | Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title_full | Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title_fullStr | Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title_short | Why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| title_sort | why do women seek ultrasound scans from commercial providers during pregnancy? |
| topic | Ultrasound Pregnancy |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/29772/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/29772/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/29772/ |