This study questioned if women who held unrealistic positive expectations concerning the postpartum period, prenatally, would experience more depression and less positive affect than women whose prenatal expectations were more realistic in relation to their postpartum experience. The 135 married women who participated in a LaMaze class completed a questionnaire at approximately seven months prenatal concerning their expectations about the postpartum period (6-8 weeks after delivery), as well as the Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Affect Balance Scale (ABS). The expectations questionnaire was re-administered 6-10 weeks after delivery to compare expectations to actual experience. The BDI and ABS were also readministered at this time to provide a change score between prenatal and postpartum depression and affect. Positive expectations that proved to be unrealistic were compared with the BDI and ABS change scores. A high discrepancy between positive expectations and postpartum experience was not significantly correlated with depression on the BDI. However, unrealistic positive expectations were significantly correlated with decreased positive affect, postpartum, on the ABS. Three out of the four positive affect subscales of the ABS were significantly affected by unrealistic positive expectations. That is, prenatal unrealistic positive expectations affected these new mothers' positive emotions of vigor, contentment and joy, rather than their negative affect or depression. A prenatal self report index of child care information also correlated significantly with the discrepancy between expectations and postpartum experience. Participants with less child care information had more unrealistic expectations about the postpartum period. / Master of Science

Men constitute 11 per cent of Scotland’s nursing workforce, yet they make up 27.6 per cent of senior management. Major research into gender and nursing career progression completed at Edinburgh Napier University last year explored the hypothesis that women’s career trajectories put them at a disadvantage. The research was conducted in two phases. The first involved a quantitative analysis of the work patterns of 65,781 nurses in Scotland between 2000 and 2008. Gender, employment grades, number and length of career breaks, length of service, age, working patterns, and number and age of dependent children were examined to identify the factors that influence women’s career outcomes.

While there is abundant research and literature on the transition to becoming a mother while working and on mothers and work-life balance, literature on clergy and, in particular, clergywomen and work-life balance is scarce. This study contributes to that literature by utilizing role theory and grounded theory methods to investigate the experience of 12 clergywomen who negotiated maternity leave with their congregations and the implications of that process on how they understood and managed their roles as mothers and pastors. The result is a model for role management through the process of negotiating maternity leave which identifies and describes the causal conditions; personal, church and intervening factors; overall experience of negotiation and consequences of the negotiation, including decisions about role management. Major findings include the observations that the most influential church factor seems to be the overall stability and organizational health of the congregation and its leadership and that a presbytery level policy may be the only effective intervention in a difficult negotiation. Limitations of the study, as well as recommendations for future study, clinical implications, and recommendations for denominational leaders are also discussed. / Master of Science

[pt] A dissertação enfoca o racismo obstétrico e suas dimensões históricas e sociais no contexto brasileiro, especialmente seu impacto na maternidade das mulheres negras, abordando os efeitos psicológicos persistentes desde a gestação até o pós-parto. A pesquisa busca compreender como as experiências de racismo obstétrico influenciam a construção da maternidade das mulheres negras bem como analisa a relação entre a mãe e o filho após possíveis traumas obstétricos, explorando os aspectos psicológicos envolvidos. A abordagem metodológica foi fundamentada nos princípios da Psicologia Narrativa, que destaca a relevância das histórias na construção da identidade e da experiência humana. A psicologia contribui para uma compreensão mais completa e contextualizada do racismo obstétrico no Brasil. Este fenômeno, que se manifesta por meio de práticas discriminatórias e racismo obstétrico direcionadas a mulheres negras, tem sido pouco abordado nos âmbitos acadêmico e literário. A ausência de conhecimento e discussões sobre o racismo obstétrico contribui para a perpetuação de desigualdades raciais e para a invisibilidade das experiências das mulheres negras no contexto da assistência ao parto. Portanto, há uma urgente necessidade de mais pesquisas e estudos abrangentes sobre o tema, a fim de ampliar a conscientização e valorização destas mulheres, garantindo uma assistência obstétrica justa e igualitária para todas. / [en] The thesis focuses on obstetric racism and its historical and social dimensions in the Brazilian context, especially its impact on black women s motherhood, addressing lingering psychological effects from pregnancy to postpartum. The research seeks to understand how experiences of obstetric racism influence the construction of motherhood for black women, as well as analyzing the relationship between mother and child after possible obstetric traumas, exploring the psychological aspects involved. The methodological approach was grounded in the principles of Narrative Psychology, which emphasizes the relevance of stories in the construction of identity and human experience. Psychology contributes to a more complete and contextualized understanding of obstetric racism in Brazil. This phenomenon, which manifests itself through discriminatory practices and obstetric violence directed at black women, has been little addressed in academic and literary fields. The absence of knowledge and discussions about obstetric racism contributes to the perpetuation of racial inequalities and invisibility of black women s experiences in the context of childbirth care. Therefore, there is an urgent need for more comprehensive research and studies on the topic, in order to increase awareness and appreciation of these women, ensuring fair and equal assistance.

Utmaningar är en oundviklig del av livet som alla människor möter men det kan varasärskilt påtagligt för kvinnor med utländsk bakgrund. Denna samhällsgrupp ställs oftainför en komplex uppsättning av svårigheter som innefattar ekonomiska, sociala ochkulturella hinder. Syftet med denna undersökning är att få en djupare förståelse överkvinnor från Mellanösterns roll på moderskapet och de utmaningar som de möter i detsvenska samhället. Denna studie tillämpar en kvalitativ forskningsmetod genom attgenomföra intervjuer med åtta kvinnor från Syrien, Irak och Palestina och analysenutgår från begreppen socialt kapital, intersektionalitet och differentiering. Studiensresultat visar att kvinnor från Mellanöstern möter sociala utmaningar, i form av brist påsociala relationer och stöd, något som utmanar deras möjlighet att uppfyllamoderskapet. Kvinnorna möter även ekonomiska svårigheter, bland annat på grund avdet samhälleliga kravet att båda föräldrarna behöver arbeta. Därmed upplever kvinnornaSverige som utmanande och krävande. Trots dessa svårigheter anser kvinnorna att livet iSverige är bättre, tack vare den trygghet och möjligheter som erbjuds här. / Challenges are an inevitable part of life that everyone faces, but it can be particularlynoticeable for women with a foreign background. This community often faces acomplex set of difficulties that include economic, social and cultural barriers. Thepurpose of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of women from the MiddleEast´s role in motherhood and the challenges they face in Swedish society. This studyapplies a qualitative research method by interviewing eight women från Syria, Iraq andPalestine and the analysis is based on the concepts of Social capital, intersectionalityand differentiation. The results of this study show that women from the Middle Eastface social challenges, in the form of a lack of social relationships and support,something that challenges their ability to fulfill motherhood. The women also faceeconomic difficulties due to the societal requirement that both parents need to work.Thus, the women's experience of Sweden is described as challenging and demanding.Despite these difficulties, the women believe that life in Sweden is better, thanks to thesecurity and opportunities offered here.

French colonial regimes in West Africa and the Caribbean left the diverse populations fragmented without a central set of cultural values to unify them. The search for identity permeates postcolonial francophone literature with the mother symbol at its center. Coinciding with popular ideologies, the portrayal of motherhood has evolved from the source of ancient roots in traditional African society to the enterprise of the future by cultivating their own mores. By analyzing the mother symbol in a variety of texts from West Africa and the Caribbean and by situating them in their historical and social context, I will assess the role of the mother in the quest for a new identity. The earlier works written by male authors in the l 940s and 1950s tend to associate the mother figure with nostalgia for the native land and tradition, and gave her stereotypical characterizations of femininity such as docility, smothering sentimentality, and dependence. The more contemporary works show mothering outside of the conventional practices, especially the female authors who include a variety of mother figures in their texts in an attempt to dispel repressive definitions. Nevertheless, all of the literary works in the study equate mothering with a prospect of hope.

<p>  </p> <p>Occasionally, the author appears as Rainer Maria Rilke in this collection of poems.</p>

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / One’s personal claims regarding personhood will influence his moral belief regarding embryo adoption. In Chapter One, I consider the personhood of the human embryo. If the human embryo is a person, we are morally obligated to permit the practice of embryo adoption as an ethical means to save human persons. However, for those who do not claim that an embryo is a person at conception, embryo adoption is not a necessary practice because we have no moral obligation to protect them. There are still others who claim that personhood is gained at some point during gestation when certain mental capacities develop. I offer my own claim that consciousness and sentience as well as the potential to be self-conscious mark the beginning of personhood. Embryo adoption raises several questions surrounding the institution of marriage. Due to its untraditional method of procreation, embryo adoption calls into question the role of procreation within marriage. In Chapter Two, I explore the nature of the marriage relationship by offering Lisa Cahill’s definition of marriage which involves both a spiritual and physical dimension, and then I describe the concept of marriage from different perspectives including a social, religious, and a personal perspective. From a personal perspective, I explore the relationship between marriage and friendship. Finally, I describe how the concept of marriage is understood today and explore the advantages to being married as opposed to the advantages of being single. Embryo adoption changes the way we customarily think about procreation within a family because in embryo adoption, couples are seeking an embryo from another union to be implanted into the woman. This prompts some philosophers to argue that embryo adoption violates the marriage relationship. In Chapter Three, I further consider the impact of embryo adoption on the family as an extension of the marital relationship as well as the impact of embryo adoption on the traditional roles of motherhood and fatherhood. I examine motherhood by looking at how some philosophers define motherhood and when these philosophers claim a woman becomes a mother. After considering these issues regarding motherhood, I examine the same issues surrounding fatherhood. Peg Brand, PhD., Chair

La réalité des femmes vivant avec le VIH (FVVIH) et désireuses d’avoir un enfant soulève un ensemble d’enjeux de santé publique et de promotion de la santé. Les études réalisées jusqu’à maintenant se sont surtout orientées sur les dimensions épidémiologiques et biomédicales de la maternité en contexte de VIH. Peu d’entre elles ont cependant tenu compte des expériences et des besoins du point de vue des FVVIH mais surtout de l’importance et des significations qu’elles accordent à la maternité. Le projet de maternité contribue à leur sens de l’existence et constitue une modalité de transformation du rapport au VIH et d’auto-transcendance. Cette perspective en tant que stratégie de promotion de la santé n’a pas été non plus suffisamment explorée. L’objectif général de cette thèse, à partir d’un cadre théorique fondé sur les approches féministes de la construction sociale de la maternité, des représentations du risque et des stratégies d’adaptation à la maladie, est d’analyser les expériences de maternité chez des FVVIH montréalaises. Au plan méthodologique, cette thèse s’appuie sur l’analyse qualitative secondaire d’entrevues, réalisées auprès de 42 FVVIH d’origine canadienne-française, africaine et haïtienne et recrutées dans des milieux hospitalier et communautaire. Ces entrevues portent sur leurs expériences quotidiennes en relation avec le VIH, leurs enjeux sociaux, leur famille et leurs relations interpersonnelles. Les données ont été analysées et interprétées selon les étapes de la théorie ancrée avec validation inter-juges. Une analyse typologique a aussi été effectuée pour dégager les modèles de maternité présents dans les discours à partir de deux types d’analyses à savoir, la « méthode relationnelle centrée sur la voix » et celle de « la logique d’action ». Trois articles scientifiques, présentant les résultats de l’analyse, ont été soumis. Le premier article décrit les modèles idéologiques de la maternité dans cette population (croissance personnelle ; réalisation sociale ; accomplissement de soi et de complétude) et ses répercussions sur la gestion du VIH (traitements, dévoilement, soins aux enfants). Le second article dégage la manière dont les femmes, selon leur modèle idéologique de la maternité, s’approprient les informations et les conseils provenant des intervenants de la santé et construisent le risque biologique associé à la maternité dans le contexte du VIH. Il cerne aussi les stratégies utilisées pour réaliser leur projet reproductif en conformité ou non avec les injonctions biomédicales. Le troisième article décrit les façons dont le projet de maternité oriente le rapport au VIH, le sens de l’existence et les expériences d’auto-transcendance des femmes (préserver un statut, un rôle et une image sociale ; transformer le rapport à la mort ; faciliter l’acceptation et la transformation du rapport à la maladie ; donner un sens et une direction à l’existence). À partir d’une réflexion sur l’articulation entre les données présentées dans les trois articles, un modèle théorique intégrateur est proposé. Les retombées de cette étude sur la recherche et l’intervention dans une perspective de promotion de la santé sont esquissées. Des pistes de transfert et de partage des connaissances sont aussi proposées. / The reality of women living with HIV (WLHIV) and who desire to have a child raises a wide range of public health issues and health promotion. To date, studies have mainly focused on epidemiological and biomedical dimensions of motherhood in the context of HIV. Indeed, few studies have taken into consideration the experiences and needs from the perspective of WLHIV and, in particular, the importance and meanings they attach to motherhood. The project of maternity contributes to their meaning of life and to the transformation of their relationship to HIV infection and self-transcendence experiences. This perspective has not been sufficiently explored in the field of health promotion strategies. The general objective of this thesis, based on feminist theories of social construction of motherhood, representations of risk and adaptive coping strategies to HIV, is to analyze the experiences of motherhood in Montreal WLHIV. In terms of methodology, this thesis is based on a secondary analysis of qualitative interviews conducted with 42 French-Canadian, African and Haitian WLHIV who were recruited in one hospital and several community centers. These interviews focused on their daily experiences related to HIV, their social issues, their family and their interpersonal relationships. Data were analyzed and interpreted according to grounded theory principles with an interjudge reliability. A typological analysis was also performed to identify the maternity models present in the discourses, taking in to account two complementary types of analysis: the “relational method centred on the voice” and that of “the logic of action”. Three scientific papers have been submitted presenting the results of the analysis. The first article describes the presence of three ideological models of motherhood according to some socioeconomical and ethnocultural characteristics (personal growth, social achievement, self-fulfillment and completeness) and their impact on HIV management (HIV treatment strategies, disclosure, children care). The second article examines how women, according to their ideological model of motherhood, appropriate information and advices originating from health professionals and construct the biological risk associated with maternity in the context of HIV infection. In addition, this article investigates the strategies used to achieve their reproductive project in compliance or not with the biomedical guidelines. The third article describes how the maternity project, according to the motherhood models, helped them to transform their perceptions of HIV infection, to find meaning to life in spite of the infection status and to experiment self-transcendence experiences (preserving a status, a role and a social image, transforming their relation to death, facilitating the acceptance of their infection status, giving new orientations to their life). In order to link the data presented in the three papers, an integrative theoretical model is proposed. Impacts of this study on research and intervention in health promotion as well as knowledge translation propositions are outlined.

A case study of two adolescent mothers of the same age is presented (17 years old) withwhich it is intended to explore the maternal representations and mother-baby interactions, that is, the different ways of “being with” a baby. The study pretends to discuss that it is not adolescent motherhood in itself a risk factor, but other mediating variables such as support network and the reflective function with which each young mother counts. Maternal repre- sentations were assessed through a semi-structured interview about maternal representations (Traverso, 2006) and the mother-infant interactions were measured and filmed through the Mother-Infant Global Ratings for two and four months (Murray, Fiori-Cowley & Cooper,1996). / Se presenta un estudio de caso de dos madres adolescentes de la misma edad (17 años), con el cual se intenta explorar las representaciones maternas y las interacciones madre-bebe, es decir, las distintas maneras de “estar con” el bebe. El estudio pretende discutir que la maternidad adolescente en sí misma no es un factor de riesgo, sino que otras variables moderadoras como la calidad de las redes de sostenimiento y la función reflexiva con que cada joven madre cuenta. Las representaciones maternas fueron evaluadas a través de una entrevista semi-estructurada sobre representaciones maternas (Traverso, 2006) y las interacciones madre-bebe fueron medidas y filmadas a través del Mother-Infant Global-Ratings para dos y cuatro meses (Murray, Fiori-Cowley & Cooper, 1996).