Sargent C, Bascope G
Department of Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, USA.
Med Anthropol Q. 1996 Jun;10(2):213-36. doi: 10.1525/maq.1996.10.2.02a00070.
This article examines the concept of authoritative knowledge elaborated by Brigitte Jordan, using examples of birthing systems in Mexico, Texas, and Jamaica. We explore the linkages between the distribution of knowledge about birth and the use of technology; the valuation of biomedical and alternative "ways of knowing" about birth; the production of authoritative knowledge through interaction; and the relationship between authoritative knowledge and social status. In the Maya low-technology, collaborative birthing system in Mexico, the midwife and other adult women share knowledge about birth. In contrast, Spanish-speaking women undergoing cesarean delivery in a high-technology public hospital in Texas are, due to their limited English, only minimally able to interact with hospital staff. While they acknowledge the authoritative position of biomedical personnel and value technology, they protest their inability to communicate during their hospitalization. Jamaican women deliver in a formerly high-technology hospital system that is now experiencing economic austerity measures that render it increasingly dysfunctional. While use of technology is infrequent in the Jamaican case, authoritative knowledge remains vested in biomedicine. By means of three examples we respond to Jordan's call for a rethinking of authoritative knowledge in high- and low-technology settings.
本文以墨西哥、得克萨斯州和牙买加的分娩系统为例，探讨了布里吉特·乔丹所阐述的权威知识概念。我们探究了有关分娩的知识分布与技术使用之间的联系；生物医学及关于分娩的替代性“认知方式”的价值评估；通过互动产生权威知识；以及权威知识与社会地位之间的关系。在墨西哥玛雅地区低技术水平的协作式分娩系统中，助产士和其他成年女性分享有关分娩的知识。相比之下，在得克萨斯州一家高技术水平的公立医院接受剖宫产的讲西班牙语的女性，由于英语能力有限，与医院工作人员的互动非常少。尽管她们承认生物医学人员的权威地位并重视技术，但她们抗议住院期间无法交流。牙买加女性在一个曾经高技术水平的医院系统中分娩，该系统现在正经历经济紧缩措施，变得越来越功能失调。在牙买加的案例中，虽然技术使用不频繁，但权威知识仍然归生物医学所有。通过这三个例子，我们回应了乔丹关于在高技术和低技术环境中重新思考权威知识的呼吁。
