Motherhood in Context—Life Course Interviews with Young Mothers in Contact with Child Welfare

Background: The purpose of this article is to explore how a sample of young mothers in contact with child welfare services in Norway narrate their transition to motherhood and their relation with child welfare services. Methods: The article is based on life-course interviews with the mothers, on which we have conducted a content analysis inspired by narrative theory. Results: Results show that whereas the mothers deviated from common expectations of predictability and orderliness before they became mothers, they strived to provide a “good enough” situation for their children in line with expectations in larger society ever after. Nevertheless, the complex disadvantages that the mothers said they had in several life domains concerning social networks and family support, education, working life, housing, and that were apparently already in their transition to adulthood, were likely to increase even after the mothers had decided to enter the mothering role in socially acceptable ways. Conclusions: The article concludes that child welfare services may contribute positively by acknowledging the complexity of young mothers’ living context when assessing mothering practices.

Expected to be mother: Women’s experiences of taking on leadership roles in the academy

For women academics, the gendered university places expectations not experienced by their male colleagues. In particular, scholarly literature includes many instances of expectations that female scholars, particularly those in management roles, will take on a motherly role within the academy. These occur even in female-dominated professions such as social work. This paper identifies four groups within the university who expect women academics to adopt a mothering role: students, staff and colleagues, senior management, and in some instances women themselves. This paper draws together this literature in the hope that it brings into public some of the often covert expectations experienced by many female academics, and argues that gender equity cannot be achieved while expectations of mothering remain unrecognised.

Narratives of Indian Parents of Children Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism has been a widely studied psychological phenomenon. However, the importance of the role of parents as caregivers in the life of the child with autism has not researched much in the Indian context. Parents of children with autism were asked to participate through Facebook support groups and Forum for Autism (India), and phone interviews were help with six parents (three mothers and three fathers) belonging to different parts of India. Using the Narrative Thematic Analysis technique, themes were drawn out from the content and delivery of the narratives. The themes that emerged from the analysis were ‘Lack of Knowledge about Autism’, ‘Emotional Upheaval of Parents’, ‘Role of Mothering’, ‘Role of Fathering’, ‘Child-centric Lifestyles’, ‘Presence of Social Support’ and ‘Effects of Sociocultural and Economic Positioning of the parents’. They were viewed from a psychosocial understanding of autism and a subjective constructivist approach, and the implications of the research were discussed.

A child sentenced to serve life without a mother : the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program and incarcerated women's mothering strategies

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] The purpose of this research is to understand the emotional and physical impacts a mother's incarceration has on her children and to closely examine a program designed to help alleviate such burdens. We will study familial relationships within the confines of a prison system while exploring the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program, which aims to strengthen the relationship between incarcerated mothers and their daughters. It is through this unique program that incarcerated women are afforded the rare opportunity to reclaim their mothering role. Given this, we will investigate the various mothering strategies employed by these women to successfully mother beyond bars. The primary ambition of most separated families is to reunite after incarceration. "Positive reunion is often the result of opportunities for continued contact between mothers and their children during a mother's incarceration" (Henriques, 1996). Prison visitation has also proven to be effective in reducing recidivism, decreasing prison violence, and thwarting the intergenerational cycle of imprisonment. However, 63% of women in state prisons are placed 100 miles or more from their families, making regularly visitation extremely cumbersome (Mosteller, 2019). The Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program breaks through this constraint by offering its troop members transportation to and from the correctional centers at no cost to these families.

Differences in Intensive Parenting Attitudes and Gender Norms Among U.S. Mothers

Motherhood is a time of significant change for a woman. Once a woman enters motherhood, she must then navigate her mothering role within the societal expectation of intensive mothering. Intensive mothering prescribes the right way to be a mother which places unrealistic standards on mothers, which can lead to negative emotional reactions. A better understanding of intensive mothering may aid in mothers’ ability to navigate the unrealistic expectations. This study sampled 525 mothers within the United States and provided insight regarding differences in intensive parenting attitudes across various demographic characteristics. The findings demonstrate differences in intensive parenting attitudes across some mother characteristics; however, there were no differences found across many characteristics indicating the pervasiveness of intensive mothering beliefs among women regardless of their personal characteristics.

“It's Hard Being a Mama”: Validation of the Maternal Distress Concept in Becoming a Mother

New mothers actively adapt to new demands and challenges in the mothering role but some may find this adjustment difficult and distressing, depending on their perceptions and resources. Previous research on maternal distress is primarily concentrated on needs of mothers with depression but nonpathological approaches of viewing difficulties in early parenting should be explored. A secondary analysis of a descriptive, qualitative study was completed on new, low-income mothers in early parenthood to determine how maternal distress influences mothers' transition to becoming a mother and to validate the use of the Maternal Distress Concept in the clinical setting. Findings reveal new mothers experience maternal distress on various levels: stress, adaptation, functioning, and connecting. Implications for practice and education are discussed.

“I’ve Got to Succeed, So She Can Succeed, So We Can Succeed”: Empowered Mothering, Role Fluidity, and Competition in Incredible Parenting

The social influence of Disney discourse is difficult to ignore, as is their repetitive matricide and positioning of the patriarchal and heteronormative family model in their bloc.kbuster animated films. Yet, through its Pixar Animation Studios subsidiary, Disney has pushed progressively at the boundaries, not only in terms of animation artistry but also through the social topics explored. This study builds on previous research of male mothering in Finding Nemo by visiting the subsequent 11 Pixar animated films, with in-depth exploration of their most recent release, Incredibles 2. Ultimately, I argue that Pixar has once again opened space by embracing empowered and collaborative parenting.