Media Framing of Body Burdens: Precautionary Consumption and the Individualization of Risk

MacKendrick, Norah

doi:10.1111/j.1475-682x.2009.00319.x

Cited by 71 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 56 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Increasing awareness of the potential harms of flame retardant exposure in pregnancy allows the individual woman to be aware of exposure to BFRs and to make informed decisions to reduce exposure to BFRs if possible [8]. However, lack of information sources on routes of exposure and potential harms of flame retardants in consumer products makes it difficult for pregnant women and women contemplating pregnancy to make such informed choices regarding how and to what extent they may decrease their exposure to flame retardants [26, 27]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pregnant Women’s perceptions of exposure to brominated flame retardants

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundRecent media reports on human studies associating brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in household products in pregnancy with urogenital anomalies in boys and endocrine disruption in both sexes. We sought to explore the perceptions of pregnant women of brominated flame retardant (BFR) exposure, in light of recent media reports on the adverse health effects of BFR exposure prenatally.MethodsPregnant women were recruited for interviews through posters and pamphlets in prenatal clinics, prenatal fairs and community centres. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim for Charmaz-based qualitative analysis supported by NVIVO 10™.ResultsTheoretical sufficiency was reached after analyzing the interviews of 23 pregnant women. Themes co-constructed were: I–Lack of Awareness of BFRs; II–Factors Influencing BFR Exposure; III–Responsibility; IV–Informed Choice. Almost all participants felt it was difficult to make informed choices to avoid BFRs, and wanted communication from clinicians and regulation from governments regarding decreasing BFR exposure.ConclusionPregnant women in Canada may be unaware of the potential risks of exposure to BFRs. Professional organizations and governments should further study risk associated with BFR exposure in pregnancy and provide educational materials for pregnant women and clinicians regarding BFR exposure.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pregnant Women’s perceptions of exposure to brominated flame retardants

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Instead, we would point to earlier research on conventional (non-ethical) consumption that has identified motivations that can be usefully applied to the case of organic food consumption: specifically, Thompson's (1996) concept of caring consumption, Miller's (1998) concept of "shopping as sacrifice" (Miller, 1998), and MacKendrick's (2010) concept of "precautionary consumption" (MacKendrick, 2010). What these three perspectives on consumption share is a framing of consumption as underscored by a sense of social connection and caring for others for whom consumers, particularly women, are personally responsible.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Organic vs. Local: Comparing individualist and collectivist motivations for “ethical” food consumption

Baumann

Engman²,

Kennedy³

et al. 2017

CanFoodStudies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We extend prior research on "ethical" food consumption by examining how motivations can vary across demographic groups and across types of ethical foods simultaneously. Based on a survey of food shoppers in Toronto, we find that parents with children under the age of 5 are most likely to report intention to purchase organic foods and to be primarily motivated by health and taste concerns. In contrast, intention to purchase local food is motivated by collectivist concerns-the environment and supporting the local economy-and is associated with educated, White, women consumers. In addition to highlighting this distinction in motivations for organic vs. local food consumption, we also argue that the predominant "individualist" and "collectivist" framing in the scholarly literature should be reformulated to accommodate an intermediate motivation. Organic food consumption is often motivated by a desire to consume for others (e.g. children) in ways that are neither straightforwardly individualist nor collectivist, but rather exemplify a caring motivation that is intermediate between the two.

show abstract

“…EHJM biomonitoring informs the public and policymakers about biomonitoring. These efforts have opened up a space for national dialog about pervasive human exposures to environmental chemicals and the need for chemical policy reform (Lautenberg 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Scientific contestations over “toxic trespass”: health and regulatory implications of chemical biomonitoring

Shamasunder

Morello‐Frosch

2015

J Environ Stud Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biomonitoring has chronicled hundreds of synthetic chemicals in human bodies. With the proliferation of biomonitoring studies from diverse stakeholders comes the need to better understand the public health consequences of synthetic chemical exposures. Fundamental disagreements among scientific experts as to the nature and purpose of biomonitoring data guide our investigation in this paper. We examine interpretations of biomonitoring evidence through interviews with 42 expert scientists from industry, environmental health and justice movement organizations (EHJM), academia, and regulatory agencies and through participant observation in scientific meetings where biomonitoring evidence is under debate. Both social movements and industry stakeholders frame the meaning of scientific data in ways that advance their own interests. EHJM scientists argue that biomonitoring data demonstrates involuntary Btoxic trespass^and underscores a policy failure that allows for the pervasive use of untested chemicals. Industry scientists seek to subsume biomonitoring data under existing regulatory risk assessment paradigms. Our analysis reveals one area of convergence (validity of Centers for Disease Control surveillance data) and seven areas of contestation regarding the scientific, public health, and policy implications of biomonitoring evidence, among regulatory, industry, and EHJM scientists including: chemical presence in bodies, biological mechanisms of health impact, use of biomonitoring equivalents, limits of targeted biomonitoring, limits of detection, policy influence of advocacy biomonitoring, and relevance of biomonitoring to motivate policy change. These areas of scientific contestation provide insight into the persistent challenges of regulating chemicals even in the midst of mounting evidence of widespread exposure to multiple compounds with implications for human health.

show abstract

Media Framing of Body Burdens: Precautionary Consumption and the Individualization of Risk

Cited by 71 publications

References 56 publications

Pregnant Women’s perceptions of exposure to brominated flame retardants

Pregnant Women’s perceptions of exposure to brominated flame retardants

Organic vs. Local: Comparing individualist and collectivist motivations for “ethical” food consumption

Scientific contestations over “toxic trespass”: health and regulatory implications of chemical biomonitoring

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About