THE PRODUCTION OF AUTHORITATIVE KNOWLEDGE IN AMERICAN PRENATAL-CARE

Using Jordan's concept of authoritative knowledge, this article descri bes some of the ways that the prenatal care practices of a group of U. S. women help to consolidate biomedical hegemony. We analyze the consi derations that the women took into account when deciding whether or no t to accept specific prenatal care recommendations as authoritative, f ocusing on when and how they used their own ''embodied'' knowledge and experience as a standard against which to assess the validity of clin ical recommendations. The data provide insight into medicalization pro cesses and the role patients themselves play in furthering biomedical hegemony.