In today’s post-Roe world, U.S. maternal mortality is on the rise and laws regarding contraception, involuntary sterilization, access to reproductive health services, and criminalization of people who are gestating are changing by the minute.
Using a reproductive justice framework, Understanding Reproduction in Social Contexts walks students through the social landscape around reproduction through the life course. Chapters by cutting-edge reproductive scholars, practitioners, and advocates address the social control of fertility and pregnancy, the promises and perils of assisted reproductive technologies, experiences of pregnancy, miscarriage, abortion, and birth, and how individuals make sense of and respond to the cultural, social, and political forces that condition their reproductive lives. The book takes an intersectional approach and considers how gender, sexuality, fatness, disability, class, race, and immigration status impact both an individual’s health and the healthcare they receive. The inclusion of timely topics such as increased legal limitations on abortion, transpeople and reproduction, and new developments in assisted reproduction and family formation, speaks to the current generation of students.
An essential text for undergraduate and graduate courses on families, gender, public health, reproduction, and sexuality.
By:
Caitlin Killian
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 254mm,
Width: 178mm,
Spine: 28mm
Weight: 503g
ISBN: 9798881801540
Pages: 560
Publication Date: 10 July 2025
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Primary
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Introduction Section I: Negotiating Sex and Relationships 1. Let’s Talk about Love Amy T. Schalet 2. Sexual Opportunities and Constraints: Women’s Intimate Relationships across the Life Course Lisa R. Miller and Savannah Bastian 3. Just Get on the Pill Krystale E. Littlejohn 4. The Mating Gap: Educated Women and Missing Men Marcia C. Inhorn Section II: Reproductive Justice and Reproductive Abuses 5. Women of Color Organizing around Women’s Health and Reproduction Zakiya Luna 6. Involuntary Sterilization: Gender, Race, and Social Control Amy V. D’Unger 7. Disability, Reproduction, and the Right to Optional Parenthood Alison Dia Turner 8. Controlling Immigrant Reproduction and the Borders of National Identity Nancy Hiemstra 9. Pregnancy and the New Jane Crow Michele Goodwin 10. Reproductive Justice in the Prison System If/When/How Section III: Reproductive Health Disparities 11. Reproductive Health for Half the Public: On the Production of Ignorance about Male Reproductive Health by Scientists, Clinicians, and the Media Rene Almeling 12. Body Stigma in Reproductive Healthcare: In Pursuit of Reproductive Justice for Fat Women Erin D. Basinger and Margaret M. Quinlan 13. Bearing Inequality: Race, Class, and Temporal Injustice among New York City’s Pregnant Low-Wage Workers Elise Andaya 14. Setting the Standard for Holistic Care of and For Black Women Black Mamas Matter Alliance 15. Black Maternal Mortality and Post-Traumatic Healing Esther-Priscilla Ebuehi Section IV: Prenatal Diagnosis and Reproductive Loss 16. Prenatal Diagnosis: Social and Ethical Dilemmas in Historical Perspective Ilana Löwy and Diane B. Paul 17. Ad-Driven Pregnancy Apps, Bonding, and Miscarriage Lara Freidenfelds 18. Men’s Encounters with Reproductive Loss: A Rarely Discussed Lived Experience Megan R. Story Chavez, Alex Eich, and Maddy Mortell Section V: Abortion 19. On Abortion and Good Mother Ideology Andréa Becker 20. Unsafe and Unequal: Reproductive Care in Catholic Hospitals in the US Lori Freedman 21. Reproduction, Politics, and Liberty: How the Supreme Court Overturned Roe v. Wade Susan Liebell Section VI: Assisted Reproductive Technologies 22. Trying Everything to Bring Home a Baby: Self-Help Groups and Add-Ons while Undergoing Fertility Treatments Rosanna Hertz 23. Biogenetic Kinship in Families Formed via Reciprocal IVF: ‘It Was [My Partner]’s Egg But My Blood Flowed through Her’ Susie Bower-Brown, Kate Shaw, Anja McConnachie, Vasanti Jadva, Kamal Ahuja, and Susan Golombok 24. Making Gaybies: Queer Reproduction and Multiracial Feeling Jaya Keaney 25. Negotiating and Navigating Surrogacy with Spouses Elizabeth Ziff Section VII: Birthing and Beyond 26. Expecting Better: Our Ongoing Experiment with Male Partner Inclusion in Pregnancy, Abortion, and Birth Joan H. Robinson 27. Disrupting the Norms: Reproduction, Gender Identity, Gender Dysphoria, and Intersectionality Trevor Kirczenow MacDonald, Michelle Walks, MaryLynne Biener, and Alanna Kibbe 28. Preventing an Unnecessary C-Section Theresa Morris and Keridwyn Spiller 29. Attuned Consent: Birth Doulas, Care, and the Politics of Consent Andrea Ford 30. The Misogyny of Lactivism: Why Breastfeeding is Central to the Discourse of Normative Motherhood Karla Knutson Section VIII: Adoption and Childfree by Choice 31. The Politics of International Adoption in the 21st Century Estye Fenton 32. Beyond Color-Blind and Color-Conscious: Approaches to Racial Socialization among Parents of Transracially Adopted Children Caitlin Killian and Nikki Khanna 33. ‘Where’s Your Man?’ Intersectionality in the Adoption Stories of Two Black, Single, Female Sociologists Cherise A. Harris and Kristie A. Ford 34. No Kidding: Childfree Women Confront the Pressures of Pronatalism Carrie Lee Smith Contributors
Caitlin Killian is professor of sociology at Drew University. She is the author of Failing Moms: Social Condemnation and Criminalization of Mothers (2023). As a consultant for the United Nations, she developed the module on sexual and reproductive health and rights for UN staff training.
Reviews for Understanding Reproduction in Social Contexts: A Reader
""Understanding Reproduction in Social Contexts covers all the bases of the social landscape of reproduction, infusing fresh perspectives and rich nuances into the conversation. With thought-provoking chapters on often overlooked aspects of reproductive health, such as body stigma and pregnancy loss, this dynamic collection is a powerhouse resource for educators and researchers alike."" --Amanda M. Czerniawski, Temple University ""In this compelling and often galvanizing interdisciplinary reader, sociologist Caitlin Killian gathers classic readings and new contributions to illuminate the profoundly social qualities of reproduction. The remarkably thoughtful array of ideas and evidence illuminates what's at stake in contemporary reproductive politics and in efforts to advance reproductive justice."" --Danielle Bessett, University of Cincinnati ""This reader provides a comprehensive overview of the varied societal forces and conditions that impact our ostensibly private personal reproductive choices and experiences, from pregnancy prevention to fertility technologies, reproductive issues across the life course, and race, gender, and sexuality disparities. An enthralling and enlightening read for anyone, suitable for the classroom and the bedside table alike."" --Hannah Espy, Lycoming College ""In Understanding Reproduction in Social Contexts, Caitlin Killian has assembled a diverse, incisive, and accessible collection of essays that are ideal for college students interested in learning about timely issues involving sex and relationships, reproductive justice, abortion, assisted reproductive technologies, birthing, and adoption."" --William Marsiglio, University of Florida ""Understanding Reproduction in Social Contexts covers essential readings in the Sociology of Reproduction. It offers a wide range of topics and perspectives, and Dr. Caitlin Killian provides important context and framing. This reader would be an excellent choice for both undergraduate and graduate courses."" --Andrea Bertotti Metoyer, Gonzaga University
