What do you want to learn? I’m interested in exploring the concept of weathering and its impact on maternal outcomes for Black women. What is weathering? What are the qualitative and quantitative assumptions surrounding this concept? Why are Black women, across all income and social classes dying at three times the rate of white women during childbirth? Does the quantitative data support or dismantle weathering? On the surface the data appears to suggest a deeper pathology at play. If I were to draw a diagram, weathering would reside in the center. What are the factors contributing to weathering? Institutional bias in our healthcare system, racism mingled with latent sexism? Unequal access to healthcare? Is the impact of structural racism measurable, and if yes, how pronounced is it in determining pregnancy outcomes?
Audience: My audience is other black women and those who wish to support them. The problem has been exhaustively identified through research. I hope to provide strategies to circumvent the impact of weathering and to uncover resources and avenues of support.
So What? While there are many articles highlighting the problem of weathering and its impact on maternal outcomes, none of the studies I found provided tangible solutions for those actively experiencing weathering. I hope to create a conversation around how best to support these women, rather than just simply watching their maternal tragedies unfold.
Based on your response to the “so what?” question, I think your question can be framed as a solution: What impact can [insert a field or discipline, like medicine or social work] have to improve maternal outcomes for Black women? Your argument isn’t so much that weathering is real or even the root causes of weathering (although your research into those issues will be necessary ), but that specific actions can/should be taken to address its impact and improve maternal outcomes for Black women. Since weathering appears to be a reality, what are mitigating actions can be taken to reduces its impact on maternal mortality?
If you think you need to more definitely prove the root causes of weathering, you may wish to ask that question. But if you believe there’s adequate support to identify those root causes in the research literature, then I think your focus can shift to mitigating the impacts of weathering on maternal mortality, and researching potential mitigating activities that might work. Your research could be a survey of medical responses, or it could be a survey or some other instrument that would capture qualitative data to parse and investigate.