Women’s Bodies and Psychological Authority: How the Professionalization of Reproductive Medicine Shaped Psychologists’ Care of Women

About the course

How did psychologists come to understand women’s emotions, behavior, and psychological distress in the ways we do today?

Part of the answer lies outside the history of psychology itself.

This one-hour introductory course examines the historical relationship between reproductive medicine and psychology, including how beliefs about women’s reproductive bodies influenced professional interpretations of women’s minds, behavior, distress, and capacity.

The course also considers how authority over women’s care shifted toward professional institutions and how those changes shaped whose knowledge was treated as credible, whose experiences were considered clinically significant, and who was authorized to interpret women’s bodies and minds.

Participants will then bring this history into contemporary psychological practice. We will consider how reproductive, relational, cultural, spiritual, and practical factors may shape women’s symptoms and clinical presentation, as well as how psychologists’ assessments, diagnoses, documentation, and formulations can influence how women are understood across systems of care.

The goal is not for psychologists to become reproductive-health specialists. Rather, the course offers a historically informed framework for asking more comprehensive questions, considering multiple plausible explanations, recognizing limits of competence, and identifying when medical evaluation, consultation, referral, or interdisciplinary collaboration may be appropriate.

Learning objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

1. Identify key historical developments in the relationship between reproductive medicine and psychology that remain relevant to contemporary psychological care of women.
2. Explain how reproductive, relational, cultural, and practical factors may influence women’s psychological symptoms, assessment, and clinical formulation.
3. Apply a historically informed framework to the assessment of women by identifying relevant questions, important clinical considerations, and appropriate referral or consultation needs.

Agenda

• Introduction and grounding
• Why this history matters to psychologists
• How reproductive medicine shaped psychological interpretations and care of women
• Professional authority and the displacement of women’s care
• How this history remains relevant to contemporary psychological practice
• Historically informed assessment and clinical formulation
• Closing integration and reflection

The live Zoom session will be scheduled for 75 minutes. The first five minutes will allow participants to join the meeting and address immediate technical needs before instruction begins.

The Zoom session will include 60 minutes of instructional content, followed by an optional period for questions and discussion.

The five-minute entry period and optional post-program discussion are not included in the instructional time and are not counted toward CE credit.

About Dr. Cortney Beasley

Cortney Beasley, PsyD, is a licensed clinical psychologist and the founder of Where Mamas Can Breathe and Put In Black LLC. Her work centers women and mothers, with particular attention to reproductive and perinatal mental health, trauma, anxiety, identity transitions, and the many ways women’s lives are shaped by their embodied experiences and the contexts in which they live.

Dr. Beasley brings a culturally responsive, relational, and holistic perspective to her clinical and educational work. Her work reflects an understanding of women’s psychological experiences within the fullness of their lives, including their physical health, relationships, caregiving responsibilities, culture, spirituality, history, and everyday realities.

Conflicts of interest: None.

Commercial support: There is no commercial support for this program.

How credit works

• Participants must attend the full 60 minutes of instructional content to receive CE credit.
• Attendance will be verified through Zoom attendance records.
• Partial CE credit will not be awarded.
• Participants must successfully complete the required assessment of learning before CE credit can be awarded. A score of 70% or higher is required to receive CE credit.
• The assessment must be completed by the deadline stated in the post-test email.
• Participants will be invited to complete a program evaluation following the course.
• Participants who meet the requirements for CE credit will receive a Certificate of Attendance electronically after the assessment closes.
• Participants should have access to Zoom, an internet-connected device, and a stable internet connection.
• Participants are encouraged to join several minutes before the instructional program begins to address any immediate technical issues.

Who can earn credit

This program offers 1 CE credit for psychologists whose licensing boards accept continuing education from APA-approved sponsors.

Professionals from other disciplines are welcome to attend but should consult their own licensing or credentialing board to determine whether this program meets their continuing education requirements.

You do not need to be a health professional to attend. Anyone interested in the material is welcome to join for the content alone, without credit.

Refunds and accessibility

Read the refund, cancellation, accessibility, and recording policies. Questions or accommodation requests: cortney@putinblack.com.