Stereotyping as a professional defence mechanism

The material in this series of papers is derived from a Department of Health funded evaluation of the MIDIRS Informed Choice leaflets (Kirkham and Stapleton, 2001). In this paper we discuss the use of stereotyping as a defence mechanism which appeared to assist midwives in coping with the pressures of contemporary professional life. Midwives sometimes misjudged women's ability and willingness to participate in their maternity care and, as a consequence, women were negatively labelled, for example, as demanding and/or as uncooperative. Midwives often formulated their opinions about their clients on the basis of circumstances over which childbearing women exercised little control: housing tenure, age and/or social class. Even when such judgments were shown to be erroneous, they generally endured throughout the maternity episode and sometimes reappeared in a subsequent pregnancy. The corrosive effects of stereotyping are examined, particularly in relationship to choice and decision-making. The article concludes with a brief mention of the short-term benefits of stereotyping as a coping mechanism in the face of limited resources.