HOW FIRST TIME MOTHERS DEVELOP a PARENTING PRACTICE in CONTEMPORARY AMERICA a Dissertation Presented to the Facu
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MOTHER MAKING: HOW FIRST TIME MOTHERS DEVELOP A PARENTING PRACTICE IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICA A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Antioch University Seattle Seattle, WA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree Doctor of Psychology By Stephanie A. Wright October 2016 MOTHER MAKING: HOW FIRST TIME MOTHERS DEVELOP A PARENTING PRACTICE IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICA This dissertation, by Stephanie A. Wright, has been approved by the committee members signed below who recommend that it be accepted by the faculty of Antioch University Seattle, WA in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PSYCHOLOGY Dissertation Committee: Suzanne Engelberg, Ph.D. Chairperson Dana Waters, Psy.D. Andrea O’Reilly, Ph.D. Date ii © Copyright by Stephanie A. Wright, 2016 All Rights Reserved iii 1 ABSTRACT MOTHER MAKING: HOW FIRST TIME MOTHERS DEVELOP A PARENTING PRACTICE IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICA Stephanie A. Wright Antioch University Seattle Seattle, WA History has shown, time and again, that parenting practices in America change in the face of important social, political, cultural and ideological transitions. Such influences are often concealed, but nonetheless greatly impact not only the way mothers parent their children but also how they think of themselves in their mothering role. Historical and feminist scholars have helped to elucidate how broad historical legacies and current ideologies, such as patriarchy, capitalism, neoliberalism, and feminism itself, continue to shape dominant discursive understandings about motherhood. Using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis, eight first time mothers from mostly white, middle class, educated and full time working lifestyles were interviewed to explore their experiences with developing a parenting practice, particularly in the face of numerous saturated cultural influences. Results revealed that participants were most likely to seek advice from close trusted peers, they were unlikely to seek or receive advice from their own parents, they tended to only trust the advice of patient-centered healthcare professionals, and their experiences and understandings of mothering were implicitly shaped by the forces of patriarchy, neoliberalism, and scientism, as well as their own intuitive maternal thinking. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and Ohio Link ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/etd Acknowledgements To my mother, to my grandmother, to my sisters, and to the many mothers I have known who have shown me the numerous faces of ‘good’ mothering; To Bill, who has stood by my side through this journey, no matter how tough it got; To Kat, my bestie-mother-sister-friend, who has held me up many a time through this process; To the fiercely intelligent and thoughtful women who participated in this study; To Suzanne, for your unwavering positive feedback; And above all, to the beautiful boy who makes me a mother, who has tolerated this intense journey by my side with patience and love, my deepest gratitude and thanks. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements…………………………………………………...………………......iv List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………....viii I. Introduction…………………………………………..………………..........................1 II. Background………………………..…..………………………………………………4 The Rise of Maternalism………………………………………………………..…4 The Age of Scientific Motherhood………………………………………………..5 Post-War Motherhood: The Custodial Era…………………………………....…10 Feminism………………………………………………………………………...15 Late Century Expert Advice……………………………………………………..17 The Age of Intensive Motherhood: Intensive and Natural Mothering Trend…....19 The Intersection of Intensive Mothering and Feminism: Cultural Feminism……24 The Psychology of Intuition……..……………………………………………….27 Interembodied Understandings of Maternal Practices………..………………….30 Unpacking the Research: What (We Think) We Know…………....…………….34 Contradiction and Confusion—Parenting Books, Internet Sources and Grandparents ….....................................................................................................40 Pressures to Conform………………………………........……………………….47 The Emergence of Confidence and Competence.....……………………......……49 Communities of Empowerment……………………………………....………….52 Considerations of Diversity and Intersectionality………………………......……55 III. Methodology………………………………………………………………………...57 Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis…………………………………….......57 Phenomenology…………………………………………………………………..57 Hermeneutics…………………………………………………………………….58 Idiography………………………………………………………..………………60 Recruitment………………………………………………………………………61 Participants……………………………………………………………………….62 Interviews………………………………………………………………………...66 Analysis………………………………………………………….……………….68 v IV. Results………………..……………………………….……………………………..70 The Decision-Making Process………………………..……………………….…70 Identified Influences……………………………………………………………..74 Trusted Peers……………………………………………………....……………..75 Maternal Peers Support Groups………………………………………………….78 Grandparents..........................................................................................................81 Published Sources of Advice: Internet, Popular Parenting Books, and Evidence Based Research......................................................................................................84 Healthcare Providers in the Millennial Era…………………………....…………90 The Husband’s Role in Early Parenting………………………………………….93 Other Important Findings Regarding the Marital Dyad…………....…………….94 A Balanced Life: Identity Outside of Motherhood for Mothering’s Sake……….95 Flexibility and Openness………………………………………………..………..98 Attachment and Bonding: Intensive Parenting over Attachment Parenting Practices….............................................................................................................99 Parenting by Contrast……………………..…………………………………….100 Postpartum Mental Health Symptoms………………………………………….103 V. Discussion…………………………………………………………………………..105 Summary of Results ……………………………………………………………106 Confirmatory Findings………………………………………………………….108 Gender Roles: The Implicit Impact of Sexism on New Mothers……………….111 The Contemporary Cultural Horizon…………………………………………...114 Limitations of the Study………………………………………………………...119 Future Research…………………………………………………………….......120 Implications for the Field of Psychology……....……...………………………..121 References…………………………....…………………………………………............123 Appendix A: Solicitation Email………………………………………………………...130 Appendix B: Demographic Phone Screening Questions…….......…….............……….132 Appendix C: Exclusion Follow Up Email……………………………………………...134 Appendix D: Participant Contact Form………………....…...………………………....136 vi Appendix E: Informed Consent…....…………………………………………………...138 Appendix F: Interview Schedule……………………....……………………………….140 Appendix G: Confidentiality Agreement With Transcription HUB...............................143 vii List of Tables Page 1. Individual and Family Characteristics of the Selected First Time Mother Participants............65 viii 1 Introduction The subject of motherhood has captured the attention of writers, artists, poets, and scholars for much of recorded history. Such interest has arguably increased in the modern era, particularly in light of the advent and expansion of the field of psychology. But how do we make sense of something as pervasive and essential to human existence as motherhood? With specific attention to American society, I hope to contribute to our current understandings of the role of motherhood and the practice of mothering in contemporary society. In particular, I hope to engender a better awareness of how new mothers develop a parenting practice when faced with the barrage of complex and sometimes contradictory social, cultural, political, and psychological influences of contemporary society. First, I identify how social understandings of motherhood have changed over the past two centuries in the face of important social and political ideological shifts. History has shown us time and again that dominant discourses emerge within various historical frames, typically reflecting the ideals of the white, middle class. These discourses profoundly impact not only the way that women practice mothering, but also how women think about themselves within their mothering roles. I identify four broad historical trends from the past two centuries, and I enumerate how these historical legacies continue to shape the way we understand motherhood today. These include maternalism from the antebellum era, scientific motherhood from the early decades of the twentieth century, custodial mothering in the post world war two era, and intensive motherhood, which has dominated contemporary understandings of motherhood for several decades (Apple, 2006; Bobel, 2002; Hays, 1996; Plant, 2010). A critical reflection of the history of motherhood in America has significant implications for how we understand parenting practices today. Firstly, it demonstrates the importance of 2 identifying the social and political ideologies that shape parenting practices within particular historical moments and cultural contexts. Secondly, it acknowledges how the presumed and often taken for granted assumptions of a practice like motherhood, however deeply impacted by one’s own physiology, is indelibly bound to the social environment. And finally, it elucidates how concealed these influences can be, even with a practice as demanding, all encompassing, and pervasive as motherhood. Next, I examine current scholarly research on the topic of motherhood. Of import, I will identify how feminist theory has helped