This thesis discusses the relationship between the experiences particular to the female body, namely pregnancy and childbirth, and the language employed to voice these experiences. This thesis is set up to reflect the physical cycle of pregnancy and birth. It is divided into three chapters. The first chapter discusses the desire for and the conception of a new use of language, a language equipped to carry the messages, creations, and voices of women. The conception of an expansion of language and the physical conception of a child are paralleled. In this chapter, poetry about wanting to write, wanting to become pregnant, and conception are used as examples of the emergence of the expanded language. In Chapter Two, the incubation of this new language is discussed, its many components and characteristics are described, and the discussion of the possible existence of a womens language is continued, by again analyzing a selection of poetry written by women. In this chapter, poetry about pregnancy and childbirth are used to exemplify the use of this language. The discussion of the gestation and birth of the expanded language with the physical gestation and birth of a child are paralleled. In Chapter Three, this notion of a womens language is further discussed, using poetry about new motherhood to demonstrate the effectiveness and existence of new ways to employ our given language. The discussion of what comes after the birth of a new, expanded language is paralleled with the experiences of a mother after the birth of her child. The ultimate conclusion of this thesis is that there is no one language that women do or should employ when writing, but a movement toward writing through the body when writing about the body, about experiences solely experienced by women.

本文以貫時性的描述，探討日治時期（前）至今台灣哺育知識變遷。研究者根據官方對於母乳哺育率的調查資料以及田野研究，將台灣哺育型態分為三個時期：母乳哺育期（~1970）、配方奶粉哺育期（1971~1990）和混合哺育期（1991~）。本文企圖分析哺育型態的轉折，以社會學的角度，將哺育知識的變遷帶入歷史時空架構和社會文化脈絡之中詮釋，並突顯行動者的角色及位置，描繪行動者與結構之間互相形塑的樣態。 　　從歷史的意義考察，本研究發現哺育型態的轉變和產程的質變聯結在一起。傳統時期的哺育知識（或母職建構）與生命歷程密不可分，存在於女性的「私相授受」之中，與女性的生活經驗交織在一塊，本文以「母性互助系統」稱之。然而隨著醫院生產成為主流，在產後病房中，則是應用兒科醫學的科學知識作為哺育指導方針。定時定量的哺育知識與配方奶粉的瓶餵實作，成為此時期的主流哺育知識，形成歷史上前所未有的人工哺育時代。而在當今的混合哺育期，則由於母乳哺育訴求與固有產科結構之間的矛盾和衝突，引導出哺育者對「新哺育專家」的需求，並詳細介紹國際認證泌乳顧問（IBCLC）目前在台灣的發展和執業狀況。 / This study explores the historical process whereby knowledge and practice about infant feeding have changed in Taiwan from the Japan-ruled period to recent years. By analyzing how the transition occurred in patterns, it highlights the role of the cultural context within which the structure of feeding knowledge, along with construction of motherhood, has shaped and been shaped by social actors in different positions. Focusing on the historical significance, we find that feeding knowledge has varied with the qualitative transformation of the process of birth-giving. Traditional knowledge of feeding, is closely related to the course of life of females, and under the influence of the private life, interwoven with their life experience. As in-hospital birth-giving becomes the mainstream, the “medicalized” and therefore “scientific” parenting authorities serve as guidelines for feeding and nurturing. Nevertheless, the idea that mothers should breastfeed their children remains unchallenged nowadays. It brings about the conflict between appeals for breastfeeding practices and obstetrics structure. Under this trend, new expert systems in feeding teaching, such as International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), emerge.

This thesis discusses the relationship between the experiences particular to the female body, namely pregnancy and childbirth, and the language employed to voice these experiences. This thesis is set up to reflect the physical cycle of pregnancy and birth. It is divided into three chapters. The first chapter discusses the desire for and the conception of a new use of language, a language equipped to carry the messages, creations, and voices of women. The conception of an expansion of language and the physical conception of a child are paralleled. In this chapter, poetry about wanting to write, wanting to become pregnant, and conception are used as examples of the emergence of the expanded language. In Chapter Two, the incubation of this new language is discussed, its many components and characteristics are described, and the discussion of the possible existence of a womens language is continued, by again analyzing a selection of poetry written by women. In this chapter, poetry about pregnancy and childbirth are used to exemplify the use of this language. The discussion of the gestation and birth of the expanded language with the physical gestation and birth of a child are paralleled. In Chapter Three, this notion of a womens language is further discussed, using poetry about new motherhood to demonstrate the effectiveness and existence of new ways to employ our given language. The discussion of what comes after the birth of a new, expanded language is paralleled with the experiences of a mother after the birth of her child. The ultimate conclusion of this thesis is that there is no one language that women do or should employ when writing, but a movement toward writing through the body when writing about the body, about experiences solely experienced by women.

A interleucina-2 (IL-2) atua na modulação da atividade dopaminérgica, que influencia o comportamento maternal. Neste estudo observou-se que o estado lactacional reduziu a atividade geral em campo aberto, porém não alterou os níveis de dopamina e seus metabólitos. A administração de IL-2, tanto sistêmica com diretamente no N.Ac não alterou a atividade geral em campo aberto, indicando a ausência de efeito motor da mesma. Além disso, a administração de IL-2 sistêmica e no N.Ac reduziu as porcentagens de ratas que agrupam os filhotes e de filhotes agrupados por rata. A injeção de IL-2 no N.Ac aumentou as latências de busca do primeiro e segundo filhotes e o comportamento agressivo. A administração sistêmica de IL-2 em ratas virgens reduziu somente do valor absoluto de DOPAC (metabólito de dopamina) após 100 e 120. Este achado corrobora a idéia de que o IL-2 altera a atividade dopaminérgica. Os resultados sugerem que a administração sistêmica da dose de IL-2 estudada não influencia de forma significativa os níveis de dopamina e de seus metabólitos no N.Ac. / Interleukin-2 (IL-2) modulates the dopaminergic neurotransmission, that into the nucleus accumbens (N.Ac) plays a role in maternal behavior. The IL-2 dose used in this study does not have motor effects. Both peripheral and central N.Ac injections decreased the percent of mothers grouping pups together and the number of grouped pups. IL-2 injections into the N.Ac resulted in longer latencies to retrieve first and second pups and increased aggressive behavior. In order to test if these behavioral effects would be related to the IL-2 reduced the DOPAC (dopamine metabolite) concentrations in the N.Ac of virgin rats treated with IL-2. This suggests suggest that the IL-2 dose used in this study does not alter so much the dopaminergic transmission by influencing extracellular levels of this neurotransmitter.

Practitioners working with children under three are often marginalised; both in terms of group settings and in terms of being a focus of research (see Manning-Morton, 2006; McDowell-Clark and Baylis, 2012). This research prioritizes the practitioner’s voice by exploring the subject area of personal theory. In this thesis, personal theory is conceptualised as a composite of understandings and experiences including policy, organisational procedures, Early Years literature, training and Continuing Professional Development as well as personal and professional experiences, beliefs, and values. As Stephen and Brown (2004) indicate, particular constructions of care, learning, and children shape what is considered desirable educational practice. Drawing on Aristotle’s intellectual virtue of phronesis, this research’s aim is to understand how practitioners’ personal and professional experiences and understandings contribute to practitioners’ construction of personal theory. Research questions focus on: 1) understanding which relationships are particularly influential, 2) understanding which experiences are particularly influential and 3) identifying key features of practitioners’ personal theories. Case study methodology frames the research design. The research demonstrates that although personal theory is tacit, linking to specific instances of practice enables practitioners to articulate personal constructions of care, learning and children. Findings relate to six key characteristics of practitioners’ personal theories: practice as an ‘Ethic of Care’, practice as pedagogy, practice as ‘subsitute mothering’, practice as distinctive for children aged birth to three years, practice as rooted in experience and practice as emotional activity. Joan Tronto’s (1993, 2013) ‘Ethic of Care’ affords further consideration of personal theory; particularly the contradiction between personal theory that shapes engagements with young children as an ‘Ethic of Care’ and that which shapes engagements as ‘substitute mothering’. The thesis’ discussion highlights how the articulation and discussion of personal theory enables a richer construction of Early Years professionalism and professional identity within Birth to Three settings.

November 2010. "Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Occupational Therapy Department, College of Allied Health and Nursing, Nova Southeastern University." This study explored the lived experiences of older mothers who continue to be the primary care providers for their adult children who have intellectual disabilities. This research study used the Person-Occupation-Environment model (Law et al., 1996) from occupational therapy and occupational science as the orienting framework. The broad question this study sought to answer was: What are the lived experiences of perpetual mothers who live with their adult child with intellectual disabilities? Other related questions were: How have mothers created and adapted daily routines and occupations for themselves and their children? What meaning and purpose evolves for perpetual mothers from their lifelong caregiver role? How do they describe this sense of meaning and purpose? The grounding of this study within occupational therapy and occupational science combined with the research questions led to implementation of a phenomenological research approach for this research. Specifically, the structure inherent in Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, Larkin, & Flowers, 2009) was adopted as the guide to methodology. Participants were identified using purposive and snowball sampling and were interviewed using Seidman's (2006) three-interview structure. The five women who participated in this study ranged from 68 to 83 years old. The themes that emerged represent structures that articulate the core of their lived experiences as primary caregiving mothers of adults who have intellectual disabilities. The essential structures or themes of these women's lived experiences are mothers' actions to structure daily life for their sons, mothers' routines--engaged lives, mothers' expertise, and mothers' reflections on mothering a son with intellectual disabilities. The results of this study contribute a focus on maternal experiences to the body of literature about, and practice with, adults who have intellectual disabilities and their families. In addition, this study contributes to the body of literature about mothering occupations found in occupational therapy and occupational science. This dissertation discussed implications for occupational therapy practice and research.

No description available.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / In this study, ideological criticism combined with use of muted group theory are employed to analyze four Quiverfull mothering blogs in order to unveil the models of mothering and maternal messages that emerge from the discourse. The Quiverfull, comprised of fundamentalist Christians who advocate prolific birth rates and strict traditional gender norms, propose a very narrowly defined view of motherhood. Therefore, the goal of this study is to analyze how Quiverfull mothers choose to construct and maintain their own rhetorical vision of motherhood through mommy blogs, in an effort to understand if Quiverfull mothers also struggle to “get it right” like so many other contemporary mothers, faced with cultural contradictions. The findings unveil that Quiverfull mothers struggle with many of the same ideological pressures that mainstream mothers endure such as being almost entirely responsible for childrearing, wanting to find time for themselves amidst society’s demands that children become a mother’s “everything,” and negotiating their role as mothers in the public sphere. However, Quiverfull mothers’ primary difference from mainstream mothers is through their relationship with God. They relinquish all control to God’s will, challenging the notion that good mothers must always be in control. Additionally, Quiverfull mothers distance themselves from feminist ideology by promulgating the need for male authority and criticizing all pro-choice sentiment. Moreover, through the exploration of these online artifacts, this study acknowledges the ideological differences between mothering groups, yet exposes that both mainstream and Quiverfull mothers find success as a mother almost unattainable. As a result, this study proposes that mommy blogs have the rhetorical ability to challenge mothering models that destine many mothers to “fail,” imbue value into motherhood, and unite women of competing and polarized ideologies as a way to question the “timeless truth” of what constitutes good mothering.

No description available.

[pt] A presente pesquisa investiga os movimentos de uma rede brasileira de mulheres-mães que age em prol da inclusão de estudantes disléxicos em esferas educacionais no país. A partir das narrativas que as participantes constroem, em entrevistas individuais e em encontros coletivos com a pesquisadora, o estudo objetiva investigar não só como e quais maternidades, atreladas à dislexia, são articuladas e elaboradas pelas participantes, mas também como essas construções estão conectadas às agências em prol da educação inclusiva. Somado a isso, este trabalho busca compreender quais outros elementos/agentes estão, de alguma forma, envolvidos na construção do processo agentivo, além de entender como as participantes da rede avaliam o legado da luta em momento porvir. As bases teóricas concentram-se, principalmente, nos estudos sobre a maternidade e a maternagem, considerando as diversas influências existentes em um país historicamente marcado pelo encontro, pelo entrecruzar e pela sobreposição de culturas diversas; nos princípios da Teoria Ator-Rede (TAR), entendendo o coletivo como rede complexa em que as agências se dão via associações e hibridismos; e nos estudos da narrativa como forma de organização social. Os processos metodológicos são qualitativos, em perspectiva de etnografia em rede sociotécnica, considerando o olhar da pesquisadora, que esteve por mais de dois anos em campo, como lugar de interpretação para análise de dados gerados com 8 participantes do Movimento Mães do Brasil – Dislexia. As análises dos dados, em primeiro momento, apontam para narrativas que entrelaçam maternidade e dislexia atreladas ao inicial desconhecimento acerca da temática, à observação atenta e à suspeita do quadro, à tentativa de silenciamento de suas vozes em ambientes escolares, à persistência na investigação diante do comportamento dos filhos/filhas e à formalização do diagnóstico. Outrossim, indicam o impacto no campo afetivo e a dislexia como ponto de virada para busca pela informação e pelo compartilhamento público de conhecimento e de vivências – além de uma experiência com empreendedorismo como forma de conciliação entre maternidade/maternagem, dislexia e trabalho. Com essas etapas, maternidades são construídas a partir de maternagens atentas, resistentes, sofridas, solitárias e, na sequência, colaborativas rumo a outros espaços. Em segundo momento, as análises apontam para a necessidade do encontro com pares que vivenciam a dislexia, algo que configura a rede, a partir da memória institucional, não só como lugar de troca, de empatia e de espelhamento, mas como lugar de articulação de práticas que intensificam os vínculos e as associações com outros atores (humanos ou não-humanos) de modo a concretizar conquistas importantes, tais como a formalização das leis acerca da dislexia no Brasil. A maternidade e a maternagem, nesse contexto, são construídas não só como lócus privilegiado de conhecimento a partir do saber familiar, doméstico e diário, como também de modo estratégico, combativo e politizado em espaços como a escola, a câmara dos deputados e o congresso nacional. Há, dessa forma, reivindicação pelo compartilhamento do cuidado e pela partilha das responsabilidades frente à educação formal, principalmente, a partir de normas legais apoiadas na inclusão, o que, de certo, configura-se como agência em interesses práticos de gênero. Por fim, as análises apontam para avaliações maternas positivas do legado porvir, apoiadas em três principais ideias: mover-se é importante; (re)conhecer a dislexia é urgente; lutar pelos direitos de seus/suas filhos/filhas é também lutar pela coletividade (e vice-versa). As maternidades, nesse contexto e com essas participantes, significa também nutrir transformações para aqueles que virão. Com essas inteligibilidades, a pesquisa busca contribuir com/para outros estudos sobre coletivos que, ativamente, atuam em prol de seus ideais. Ressaltamos, do ponto de vista teórico e metodológico novas formas de olhar para a maternidade no encontro com a dislexia e com a educação, que precisa, de fato, ser inclusiva, assim como para o coletivo como rede em suas múltiplas agências. Esperamos, a partir da investigação proposta, também propiciar reflexão, ação e mudança. / [en] The present research investigates the initiatives of a Brazilian network of women-mothers who act in favor of the inclusion of dyslexic students in educational spheres of their country. From the narratives built by the participants, in individual interviews and in collective meetings with the researcher, this study aims to investigate not only how and which kinds of motherhood linked to dyslexia are articulated and elaborated by the participants, but also how these constructions are connected to the agencies for inclusive education. In addition, this work seeks to understand which other elements/agents are, in some way, involved in the construction of the agentive process, besides understanding how the network participants evaluate the legacy of the impending struggle. The theoretical framework mainly focus on studies about motherhood and mothering, considering a variety of influences in a country which is historically marked by the encounter, the intersection and the overlapping of different cultures; in the principles of the Actor-Network Theory (ANT), which understands the collective movement as a complex network in which the agencies take place via associations and hybridism; and in narrative studies as a form of social organization. The methodological processes are qualitative in the perspective of ethnography in a socio-technical network, considering the researcher s view. The analyst spent more than two years was in the research field, a place of interpretation and analysis of data generated with 8 participants who belong to the social movement called Mães do Brasil – Dislexia (Mothers from Brazil – Dyslexia). The data analysis, at first, point to narratives that intertwine motherhood and dyslexia linked to the initial lack of knowledge about the theme, the attentive observation and suspicion of the situation, the attempt to silence their voices in school environments, the persistence in the investigation before sons’/daughters’ behaviors and official diagnosis. Furthermore, they indicate the impact on the affective field and dyslexia as a turning point for the search for information and for the public sharing of knowledge and experiences - in addition to an experience with entrepreneurship as a way of reconciling motherhood/mothering, dyslexia and work. With these steps, a variety of motherhood types are built from attentive, resistant, suffering, solitary and, subsequently, collaborative mothering. Secondly, the analyses point to the need of meeting peers who experience dyslexia, something that configures the network, based on institutional memory, not only as a space for exchange, empathy and mirroring, but also as a place for the articulation of practices that intensify ties and associations with other (human or non-human) actors in order to get important achievements, such as the formalization of laws on dyslexia in Brazil. Motherhood and mothering, in this context, are constructed not only as a privileged locus of domestic and daily family knowledge, but also in a strategic, combative and politicized way in spaces such as the school, the Chamber of Deputies and the National Congress. There is, therefore, a demand for sharing care and responsibilities in relation to formal education, mainly based on legal norms supported by inclusion, which, of course, is configured as an agency in practical gender interests. Finally, the analyses point to positive maternal assessments of the legacy to come supported by three main ideas: moving is important; (re)knowing dyslexia is urgent; fighting for their sons/daughters rights is also fighting for the collectivity. Motherhood, in this context and with these participants, also means boosting changes for those who will engage some day. With these intelligibilities, the research seeks to contribute with/to other studies on social groups that actively work towards their ideals. Concerning the theoretical and methodological frameworks, new ways of approaching motherhood, dyslexia and education were presented. Education does need to be inclusive. It is also suggested other ways of framing social groups as networks in their multiple agencies. We hope the proposed investigation can provide reflection, action and change.