Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 8-13-2019 2:30 PM Strategic and Subversive: The Case of the Disappearing Diaphragm and Women’s Information Practices Sherilyn M. Williams The University of Western Ontario Supervisor McKenzie, Pamela The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Library & Information Science A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Doctor of Philosophy © Sherilyn M. Williams 2019 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Library and Information Science Commons Recommended Citation Williams, Sherilyn M., "Strategic and Subversive: The Case of the Disappearing Diaphragm and Women’s Information Practices" (2019). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 6437. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/6437 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Abstract Birth control options for women have advanced significantly over the past century. Barrier methods such as diaphragms became readily available in the first half of the 20th century, while hormonal contraceptives such as the birth control pill have defined advances in the latter half. While the diaphragm is still contextualized in modern sexual health discourse as an accessible birth control option, women in North America, and across the globe, are finding it increasingly difficult to obtain. This is partly because the skill of fitting a diaphragm is disappearing in medical practice, and also due to pharmaceutical influence on medicine that promotes hormonal methods and IUDs (intrauterine devices) as being more efficacious and profitable.