CHR Research Talk: Breonna Riddick (Communication), "Making Birth Stories Matter(s): An Examination of Health, Communication, Culture and Identity through Critical Autoethnography and Narratives of Women Birthing with Doulas"

Tuesday, September 12, 2023 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EDT
Horizon Hall 6325

CHR Research Talk: Breonna Riddick (Communication), "Making Birth Stories Matter(s): An Examination of Health, Communication, Culture and Identity through Critical Autoethnography and Narratives of Women Birthing with Doulas"

Breonna Riddick is a PhD Candidate and Graduate Teaching & Research Assistant in the Department of Communication. Her research interests include health communication and advocacy, interpersonal communication and intercultural communication. Much of her research focuses on the intersections of health, identity, power and culture in various contexts. Bree also serves as a birth doula, a labor-support person who provides emotional, educational and physical support to families as they prepare to bring forward new life! Improving perinatal healthcare is one of Bree’s main goals for her research areas bridged with her practice as a birth worker. 

Bree's project is titled "Making Birth Stories Matter(s): An Examination of Health, Communication, Culture and Identity through Critical Autoethnography and Narratives of Women Birthing with Doulas." Birth doulas are described as trained labor-support professionals who provide continuous emotional, physical and informational support for families during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum periods. Birth doulas have increased healthy birth outcomes, including reducing unnecessary medical interventions and decreasing the time spent in the most intense phases of labor. In the current context of maternal and perinatal healthcare in the United States, the relationship between birthing people and birth doulas is a site for cultural analysis to understand how culture, structure and agency intertwine to influence birthing decisions and outcomes. This dissertation blends two qualitative methodologies (critical autoethnography and semi-structured interviews with women who have given birth with a doula present) to interrogate the intersections of disposability, democracy, capitalism, and social justice for birthing women in the United States. These stories are important for transforming narratives around birth and improving health outcomes for birthing women and future generations. 

Please join us in person in Horizon Hall 6325 or on zoom for a presentation and discussion. Zoom link will be provided through CHR's newsletter which you can sign up for HERE.

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