Almeling, Rene. “Gender and the Value of Bodily Goods: Commodification
in Egg and Sperm Donation.”
Law and Contemporary Problems
(forthcoming).
Timmermans, Stefan and Rene Almeling. “Objectification,
Standardization, and Commodification in Healthcare: A Conceptual
Readjustment.”
Social Science and Medicine (forthcoming).
Saguy, Abigail C. and Rene Almeling. 2008. "Fat in the Fire? Science, the News Media, and the 'Obesity Epidemic.'"
Sociological Forum 23: 53-83.
Almeling, Rene. 2007. "Selling Genes, Selling Gender: Egg Agencies, Sperm Banks, and the Medical Market in Genetic Material."
American Sociological Review 72: 319-340.
Abstract:
Eggs and sperm are parallel bodily goods in that each contributes half of the reproductive material needed to create life. Yet these cells are produced by differently sexed bodies, allowing for a comparative analysis of how the social process of bodily commodification varies based on sex and gender. Drawing on interview and observational data from two egg agencies and two sperm banks in the United States, this article compares how staff recruit, screen, market, and compensate women and men donors. Results show how gendered norms inspire more altruistic rhetoric in egg donation than in sperm donation, producing different regimes of bodily commodification for women and men. I conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for debates in sociology of gender about biological differences among women and men and the cultural norms attributed to these differences; debates in economic sociology about how social factors shape the expansion of the market; and debates in medical sociology about the intersection of the market and medical practice.
Awards:
American Sociological Association Sex and Gender Section, Distinguished Article Award - Honorable Mention
American Sociological Association Economic Sociology Section, Ronald
Burt Outstanding Student Paper Award (Co-Winner)
UCLA Center for the Study of Women, Elizabeth Blackwell, M.D. Award (Co-Winner)
Almeling, Rene. 2006. "'Why do you want to be a donor?': Gender and the Production of Altruism in Egg and Sperm Donation."
New Genetics and Society 25: 143-157.
Abstract:
In the United States, women and men are paid thousands of dollars to 'donate' eggs and sperm through commercial agencies. Previous research on egg and sperm donation generally focuses on either the individual donor's motivations or the structural context of commercial agencies, and is often limited to studying either women or men, precluding a direct, gendered comparison of the production of altruistic rhetoric in assisted reproduction. Drawing on qualitative interviews and observation of staff at two egg donation agencies and one sperm bank in California, I demonstrate how staff advise donors about providing gender-appropriate responses on donor profiles, which results in measurable differences in the percentage of women and men who report altruistic and financial motivations (n = 638 profiles). This study contributes to economic sociology and the sociology of gender by demonstrating the extent to which reported motivations on donor profiles are produced through staff/donor interaction in the gendered organizations of egg donation agencies and sperm banks.
Almeling, Rene, Laureen Tews, and Susan Dudley. 2000. "Abortion Training in U.S. Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Programs, 1998."
Family Planning Perspectives 32: 268-271, 320.
Abstract:
Since the late 1970s, the number of obstetrics and gynecology residency programs providing abortion training in the United States has steadily decreased. Given the documented shortage of abortion providers, assessing and ensuring the availability of abortion training in graduate medical education is critical. In 1998, the National Abortion Federation surveyed the 261 accredited U.S. residency programs in obstetrics and gynecology, and analyzed the availability of first- and second-trimester abortion training. Of the 179 programs that responded to the survey, 81% reported that they offer first-trimester abortion training - 46% routinely and 34% as an elective. Seventy-four percent of programs offer second-trimester training - 44% routinely and 29% as an elective. Some programs that do not offer training give residents the option of obtaining it elsewhere. While 26% of programs indicated that all residents in their programs receive abortion training, 40% said that fewer than half are trained, including 14% that train no residents. The operating room is the most common training site: fifty-nine percent of programs reported that abortion training takes place in the operating room. After a decades-long decline in the availability of abortion training, opportunities for abortion training have increased. However, there is reason to be cautious in interpreting these results, including possible response bias and pressure to report the availability of abortion training because of new guidelines from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
Press:
Doughton, Sandi. 2003. "Roe v. Wade at 30: Abortion Doctors' Numbers Dwindle: Persuasive Foes, Less Training Cited." P. A1 in the Seattle Times.
Rubin, Rita. 2000. "Abortion Training Jumps." P. 44 in the Chicago Sun-Times.
Rubin, Rita. 2000. "More Medical Schools Offer Abortion Training." P. 1D in USA Today.
Villarosa, Linda. 2002. "Newest Skill for Future Ob-Gyns: Abortion Training." P. F6 in The New York Times.
Almeling, Rene. Review of
Gender and Health: The Effects of
Constrained Choices and Social Policies by Chloe Bird and Patricia
Rieker.
Sociological Inquiry (forthcoming).
Almeling, Rene. 2009. Review of
Cold Intimacies: The Making of
Emotional Capitalism by Eva Illouz.
Contemporary Sociology
38: 184-185.
Almeling, Rene. 2006. Review of
Last Best Gifts: Altruism and the Market for Human Blood and Organs by Kieran Healy.
European Economic Sociology Newsletter 8(1): 44-45.