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debergh_articlev6_archivesunige
Public access from
10/04/2026
Journal article

Producing bodies at risk in sexual health: an ethnographic comparative
analysis between the combined oral contraceptive pill and pre-exposure
prophylaxis in Switzerland

BP2-STS

  • Debergh, Marlyse ORCID Fonds national suisse, Université de Fribourg, Université d'Amsterdam, Université de Genève
  • 2020
Published in:
  • Health Sociology Review. - 2020, vol. 29, no. 3, p. 329-343
Bodies at risk
Combined oral contraceptive pill
Pre-exposure prophylaxis
Ethnography
Switzerland
English This article demonstrates that ‘bodies at risk' in sexual health are socially constructed. It does so via a heuristic comparison between two molecular technologies that are central to the promotion of sexual health: the combined oral contraceptive pill (COCP) and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in two sexual health institutions in the western part of Switzerland, the article presents two main findings. First, it argues that bodies are constructed as being at low or high risk by sexual health professionals (based on health and lifestyle criteria). Second, it shows that access to either the COCP or PrEP is largely based on this former classification. The article also demonstrates that there are ambivalent situations in which sexual health professionals seek compromises between different risks, and pragmatically adapt their medical protocols.
Faculty
Faculté des lettres et des sciences humaines
Department
Département des sciences sociales
Language
  • English
Other electronic version

Published version

License
CC BY-NC
Open access status
green
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://folia.unifr.ch/unifr/documents/330076
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