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Anticipatory Socialization Of Pregnant Women: Learning Fetal Sex And Gendered Interactions, Medora Barnes
Anticipatory Socialization Of Pregnant Women: Learning Fetal Sex And Gendered Interactions, Medora Barnes
Medora W. Barnes
Although doctors still frequently call out “It’s a girl!” when a baby girl is born, the majority
of mothers now use ultrasound to find out the sex months earlier. This study examines how
women who learn the sex of their fetus before birth are engaging in gendered verbal interactions
throughout pregnancy. These include types of conversations, usage of gendered pronouns, and
calling the unborn baby by a given name. These changes in behaviors by pregnant woman once
fetal sex is known can be seen as a form of anticipatory socialization, as they begin to practice
the behaviors and values associated …