医療従事者はリスクをいかに語るか？

生殖技術の出生児リスクについての談話分析

抄録

　Information on risks faced by children born of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) is difficult to understand. Moreover, the opinions of specialists on this topic are inconstant. The discourses of 46 medical professionals involved in the practice of ART regarding the risks faced by children were analyzed. Results indicated that these discourses could be divided into three types: Affirmative type that acknowledges some risks for children; Negative type that denies any risks; and Reserve type that reserves judgment about the risks. In Affirmative and Negative types of discourses, the risks of ART for children were interpreted from a professional perspective using “empirical repertoire.” In the Reserve judgment type, a “contingent repertoire” was used and ART risks were seen from multiple perspectives. Besides, the interpretation regarding the risks of ART for children was different according to the informants’ attributes, such as their gender, age and occupation. It is concluded that the way professionals talk about the risks of ART is correlated with their perception of the risks faced by children, which in turn is affected by their attributes.