The Obstetric Violence as Objectification of Woman: A Study on Social Representations

Abstract

This study aimed to apprehend the contents of women's social representations about obstetric violence and to understand the relationship of social representations with situations of violence experienced in the birth process. This is an exploratory study of a qualitative nature based on the procedural approach of the Theory of Social Representations. Semi-structured interviews were conducted by video call with 30 women who had vaginal delivery between 2017 and 2021. Data were processed in the IRaMuTeQ software, using the Descending Hierarchical Classification for data treatment. The lexical analysis resulted in the identification of two thematic axes that originated six classes. Axis A presented the conceptual and affective dimension of women's representations about obstetric violence and Axis B addressed the experiences from pregnancy to the birth that supported the construction of women's representations about obstetric violence. Women represented obstetric violence as an action to curtail their autonomy, unnecessary behavior and psychological violence. They pointed out the importance of being well informed during prenatal care and of being adequately prepared for the birth process. It is proposed that paths for better maternal and neonatal care be taken with educational actions in prenatal care and qualification of obstetric care.