5 Between Uncertainty and Routinization

Abstract

Stefan Reinsch seeks to understand how a new predictive genetic test, NIPT, is becoming routinized in prenatal diagnosis, while at the same time introducing uncertainty and the potential for women to gain more agency within the complex relationship between pregnancy, disability, and family life. Based on qualitative interviews with women and their partners in Germany, he shows how, far from being prey to technology, some make pragmatic use of NIPT as a resource or tool for gaining knowledge, while others reject the demands and obligations of testing practice by embracing the uncertainty of an unfolding pregnancy as an alternative logic.