Page 184 - 《社会》2026年第4期

从分娩记忆看中国女性产痛的代际变迁与社会意涵

connections reveal divergent social implications. The study finds that labor pain
exhibits clear intergenerational differences. Specifically， prior to the 1970s， the
home was the sole setting for childbirth， and family relationships-particularly those
between mothers鄄in鄄law and daughters鄄in鄄law -served as the primary narrative
framework. Physical pain of labor was subsumed into endless sufferings from
material scarcity，strenuous work， and inadequate care. In 1975， marked by the
establishment of obstetric wards in township health centers， childbirth gradually
shifted from home to these facilities. The initial introduction to modern medicine
improved the safety of childbirth but also led to iatrogenic pain. In the absence of
effective pain management techniques， the trust and interpersonal bonds within a
rural community of acquaintances -nurtured in a semi鄄open environment -function
as an implicit pain鄄relief mechanism. As the medicalization of childbirth has
progressed， medical settings and doctor鄄patient relationships have become
significant forces shaping the experience of labor pain， and the awakening of bodily
consciousness has further rendered pain a central theme of childbirth memories. In
terms of pain management， pain relief technologies such as epidural analgesia have
failed to deliver anticipated efficacy. The root cause lies in the emotional alienation
wrought by clinical environments and technical rationality， which amplified women’s
perceptions of agony and simultaneously creates room for non鄄technical interventions
including social support. Accordingly， from childbirth spaces to medical
technologies and maternal subjectivity， the intergenerational shifts in childbirth
memories have been manifested in multiple dimensions but cannot be simplified as
“mothers becoming more sensitive to pain”； rather， “every generation has its own
specific labor pain.” The research reveals that pain is never merely physiological
sensations， but a bodily experience deeply rooted in social structures， intertwined
with socio鄄cultural change， the medicalization of childbirth， and women’s
burgeoning self鄄awareness. Consequently， true pain relief depends not only on the
innovation and popularization of analgesic technologies but also on an institutional
design that restores the synergy between the family， the community， and the
medical system. Addressing the psychological and social needs of mothers must be
integrated into the construction of a childbirth鄄friendly society.
Keywords：labor pain， birth memories， generational shift， social implications

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