另類科學母職與順勢療法

Alternative Scientific Motherhood and Homeopathy

本文探討母親作為醫療資源使用者，在對主流醫療有疑慮時，如何藉由自己的資源與行動，為孩子做出最有利亦符合理念的醫療抉擇。本文聚焦在一群崇尚自然、高文化資本的台灣母親，以源自西方的另類醫療─順勢療法作為育兒照護首選的考量與歷程。透過「另類科學母職」的概念，這篇文章試圖捕捉這群母親穿梭在科學與自然、主流與另類醫療間的母職實作。運用深度訪談與參與式觀察，研究發現，對自然療癒的信念與另類社群的推動力量，是這群母親能夠接觸並認同順勢的重要推力。同時，她們對主流醫學並非採取全然拒絕的態度；相反地，對科學資訊的掌握與詮釋也是促使她們做出另類選擇的重要驅力。值得注意的是，她們的社經位置所帶來的文化、經濟與社會資源，使她們有充分條件運用「另類科學母職」與「順勢為主、西醫為輔」的醫用策略，拿回孩子醫療的主導權，並且極大化成功的可能性─亦即讓孩子復原，同時避開西藥可能的傷害。過去的研究顯示，女性可能透過另類醫療的使用歷程而培力。本研究發現，即使是以母職角色使用另類醫療，女性也能因此對母職更有認同與勝任感，但仍限於個人與社群的層次，對既有性別與醫療體系影響有限。

This study addresses the issue of how mothers (as medical users) utilize their resources to act and respond when they are dissatisfied with conventional health care for children. Focusing on a group of Taiwanese women with high social capital and strong preferences for natural lifestyles, I explore their decision-making processes for considering “homeopathy,” an alternative medical system, as a top healthcare choice for children. I introduce a concept of “alternative scientific motherhood” to illustrate their motherhood journey in which they shuttle back and forth from science to nature, from biomedicine to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Through in-depth interviews and participant observation, results of this study suggest that these mothers’ endorsements of homeopathy come from their beliefs in natural healing and the popularity of homeopathy in their affiliated communities. Even so, western medicine is never abandoned, and their understanding and reflection on modern science and medicine may rather serve to justify their unconventional choices. Meanwhile, it is important to note that in utilizing the strategy of “alternative scientific motherhood” combined with the action of “homeopathy first, western medicine second,” these mothers’ relatively privileged social status offers many necessary social, cultural, and economic resources, with which they maximize chances for success (e.g. children recover from illness without medication). Previous research indicates that participating in CAM empowers women. This study further extends previous findings by showing that motherhood with CAM can empower women as well. However, their empowerment is still limited to the scope of individual or community level, but does not relate to collective action to change healthcare and gender relations.