MAVIS KIRKHAM is Professor of Midwifery in the Women's Informed Childbearing and Health (WICH) Research Group at the School of Nursing & Midwifery, University of Sheffield, and a prolific midwifery author. Her previous publications include The Midwife-Mother Relationship (Palgrave, 2000), Developments in the Supervision of Midwives (Books for Midwives, 2000), and Reflections on Midwifery (Balliere Tindall, 1997).

• Introduction; M.KirkhamWhy Can't Women Just Say No? And Does it Really Matter?; N.Pilley-EdwardsInformed Choice in Maternity Care; B.HewsonHow Midwives Used Protective Steering to Facilitate Informed Choice in Pregnancy; V.LevyCan Leaflets Deliver Informed Choice?; A.O'CathainIs There a Difference Between a Free Gift and a Planned Purchase? The Use of Evidence Based Leaflets in Maternity Care; H.StapletonThe Culture of the Maternity Services in Wales and England as a Barrier to Informed Choice; M.Kirkham & H.StapletonInformation Used by Pregnant Women, and Their Understanding and Use of EvidenceBased 'Informed Choice' Leaflets; M.Wiggins & N.NewburnIntegrating MIDIRS Informed Choice Leaflets into a Maternity Service; J.DemilewShould Doctors Perform Caesarean for 'Informed Choice' Alone?; S.Bewley & J.CockburnNegotiating Elective Caesarean Section: An Obstetric Team Perspective; J.SimpsonBirth Experiences of South Asian Muslim Women: Marginalized Choice within the Maternity Service; N.EllisThe Misleading Myth of Choice: The Continuing Oppression of Women in Childbirth; T.AndersonChoice and Bureaucracy; M.Kirkham.