My main areas of research interest are effective labor support by doulas; the psychological needs of mothers and fathers during labor and birth; and women’s sexuality. 

Labor and Birth:

I usually have one or two active projects going on, with future projects being outlined.  I have no problem coming up with ideas!  With my master’s thesis, Effective Labor Support by Doulas, I was able to outline a theory of why doulas are effective.  Namely, they meet the attachment needs of mothers during labor in a way that that nurses and fathers are not able to do.  Because of this mechanism, the doula has the potential to positively affect the physiological processes of the mother’s body.  I am actively seeking publication of two different papers based on this phase of the project.

My PhD dissertation is in the works.  In it, I expand and solidify the attachment aspects of my theory; explore the relationships between fathers and doulas; outline how doulas and nurses and other medical caregivers get along; and show how doulas move from novice to expert in their professional skills.  Some of these topics have already made their way into my speaking topic lists.

At this time, I am seeking to work with one or two more hospital based doula programs in the United States, interviewing parents, nurses, and the doulas who work for the hospital.  I am grateful to Cindy Kerbs, RN and doula coordinator at Lexington Medical Center in Columbia, South Carolina.  She and her doulas helped me to arrange contact with parents, and encouraged nurses in the labor and delivery unit to talk with me. 

Sexuality

Female Ejaculation may not seem like a compatible topic with labor and birth.  It is a parallel interest that came up during an graduate seminar in sexuality with John Delamater, a distinguished professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  I chose the research topic of female ejaculation, which is the release of copious amounts of fluid during sexual arousal or orgasm by a woman.  As I explored this much debated topic, I realized that in thirty years of research, no one had ever asked women about their experiences.  No one ever identified women who ejaculated and then asked, “What is this experience like for you?”

I found this infuriating!  Here were all these people debating whether a woman’s body could actually do this and not ask women about what they thought was going on?  Or even more importantly, how it affected their lives?  This echoed exactly what I had experienced in the childbirth literature.  Until recently, no one asked women how they felt about certain procedures – mother’s feelings and experiences were not considered to be relevant.  So I set about to change this. 

With John’s encouragement, I followed qualitative research guidelines and conducted a small project over a year’s time.  I have presented my research results at two conferences.  But because of the controversy surrounding the whole topic (I entered a historical hornet’s nest), I have had trouble getting it published.  So my next plan is to conduct another wave of research with more women (and their partners this time) and publish it then.  To read my paper, please go to the Publications page.