Macquarie University

Regulating Intimacy: Sexual and Reproductive Health in a Global Context - ANTH736

This unit examines how modernisation impacts on populations in developing countries by focusing on sexual and reproductive health. Improving these dimensions of well-being are central elements of global development goals and numerous health projects. As market engagement expands around the world, changing material and affective economies offer new opportunities for many people in developing countries. In this context, everyday social and cultural aspects of reproduction are increasingly commoditised and linked into global circuits of value. At the same time, public health interventions seek to promote health security, regulate intimate life and reduce disease spread. We consider how social life unfolds through practices of intimacy and how these in turn have specific implications for how health is imagined and maintained by looking at the assumptions and practices underpinning sexual and reproductive health programs. This unit will thereby examine why sexual and reproductive domains are such prominent targets for development attention and the significant challenges that arise in seeking to intervene in these aspects of everyday life.