No description available.

Early motherhood is a much debated and highly contentious topic. This research aimed to explore young Pākehā women's experiences of motherhood using a feminist qualitative framework. Twelve women, six current young mothers and six former young mothers, were interviewed via focus groups and individual interviews. The analysis revealed that Pākehā culture constructs young mothers as problematic because they challenge the 'traditional' family dominant in Pākehā culture. By having children prior to, rather than after, workforce participation and achieving economic independence, young mothers challenge the prescribed life trajectory for Pākehā women. The women in this study discussed both the positive aspects and the challenges they faced as young mothers. In contrast to common public perceptions and media representations of early motherhood as negative, motherhood positively transformed the women's lives. This was discussed in terms of ceasing destructive activities and gaining motivation to return to education. The young mothers in this study had flexible parenting styles, which allowed them freedom from Pākehā cultural pressure to 'do motherhood' in a particular way. As young mothers, the women had high energy levels and anticipated early future freedom from childcare duties to pursue their dreams. Challenges discussed by the women included incorporating unanticipated early motherhood into long-held life goals, feeling exhausted, having a lack of time for themselves and having too little support. Financial hardship, poverty, judgment and stigma surfaced as major challenges which affected all areas of the women's lives. However, the women also resisted this discrimination by using a range of strategies, which positions them as women with agency, challenging their representation within literature as passive victims. Young women will not use services where they perceive they will be judged for being who they are. As levels of support appear to determine how young women experience motherhood, services have a vital role to play in supporting young mothers. The findings of this study highlighted the complex and contradictory nature of the young mothers' stories, presenting a challenge to simple and stereotypical negative discourses of early motherhood.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to inform nursing practice and clinical interventions that support breastfeeding among mothers <24 years of age who resided in a maternity shelter. Methods: Nine young mothers aged 17 to 24, who had initiated breastfeeding, and resided at a maternity shelter, participated in individual semi-structured interviews. This qualitative study was conducted using interpretive description methodology and inductive content analysis. Findings: These young mothers took ownership of their choice to breastfeed and found empowerment in this choice and practice. The institutional and social environments that young mothers experienced were critical to their breastfeeding success. Hospital postpartum nurses had a critical role in the establishment of early breastfeeding by providing a combination of practical hands-on and emotional support to the multifaceted needs of these mothers. Ongoing, accessible, and non-judgemental peer, family, and community support were important to breastfeeding initiation and duration. Conclusion: A combination of emotional and practical supports from multifaceted trusted sources, including professional and peer supports on an ongoing basis are crucial to young at-risk mothers reaching their breastfeeding goals. Implications for clinical practice: Nurses need to focus dually on the practical aspects of breastfeeding while establishing strong therapeutic relationships with this population to successfully provide breastfeeding supports. A combination of accessible and trusted long term professional and peer supports is a key element to designing future breastfeeding support and promotion programs for this population.

This thesis explores the ways in which the young mothers who participated in the online community of Girl-Mom.com were influenced by the dominant website discourses. Young mothers are positioned as deviant throughout time, with specific consequences related to notions of stratified reproduction. Girl-Mom.com exists within social relations of third wave feminism, and in the social context of cyberspace. Within this background, feminist post-structuralism is employed to read discussion forum posts to note how concepts of discourse, power and knowledge, subjectivity and resistance create discursive effects. The Girl-Mom discourse emerges as a major theme. The qualities of the Girl- Mom discourse enlist young mothers in their own emancipation and the creation of self- knowledge while invoking processes of normalization, regulation and discipline between members. In the process, motherhood is valued as a biological act in which women are revered for their reproductive capabilities, with different effects for racialized women. / Graduate / 0452 / leanne.gislason@gmail.com

No description available.

The present study employed interpretive phenomenology analysis to explore the lived experiences of young mothers as it pertains to intergenerational family support within the Appalachian context. Informed by symbolic interactionism, the life course perspective, and the kinscripts framework, the present study sought to uncover the meanings attributed to help from family for young mothers. Nine women (ages 18-28; M= 23.33) who had children between the ages of 15 and 19 were interviewed for present study. Through detail-rich narratives, meanings ascribed to help were uncovered. Help was equated with love, and it was presented as a paradox. Help was also conceptualized as a pathway to facilitate young mothers’ autonomy in their new parental roles. Having autonomy, that is defined as the ability to make parenting decisions, along with support from family was associated with feeling confident and adequate as mothers. Mothers who were refused autonomy described distress and struggled with identifying in their new parental role. These findings and their implications are discussed further. / M.S. / The present study explores the experiences of young mothers as it pertains to intergenerational family support, or help from family. Young mothers discussed the ways in which they received or did not receive help from family. Nine women (ages 18-28; M= 23.33) who had children between the ages of 15 and 19 were interviewed for present study. Through detail-rich narratives, meanings ascribed to help were uncovered. Help was equated with many different emotions, including love. Help was also understood as a pathway to facilitate young mothers’ independence in their new parental roles. Having autonomy (i.e., independence), that is defined as the ability to make parenting decisions, along with support from family was associated with feeling confident and adequate as mothers. Mothers who were refused autonomy described distress and struggled with identifying as mothers. These findings and their implications are discussed further.

Thesis (M.Ed. (Curriculum Studies) --University of Limpopo, 2013 / This qualitative study was conducted to explore the challenges experienced by teenage mothers in Hlanganani South Circuit Secondary Schools in the Vhembe District in Limpopo, South Africa. Hlanganani South circuit is made up of seven secondary schools and out of these seven three were sampled because of their vicinity and the high number of teenage mothers in them. A purposive sample was conducted wherein twelve teenage mothers aged between twelve to eighteen years, three educators and three School Management Team members from these secondary schools were sampled to explore the challenges that teenage mothers come across in these schools. Data were collected using two methods, namely: semi structured interview and documents analysis. Semi structured interviews were used to gather information from both teenage mothers and educators while documents such as period registers, attendance registers, morning study registers, permission register, winter enrichment programme registers, afternoon study register, quarterly schedules and continuous assessment tasks were used to explore the challenges faced by teenage mothers in secondary schools. Data from semi structured interview with teenage mothers were analysed and the following themes and categories emerged: difficulty in balancing schooling and motherhood, negative attitude by educators towards teenage mothers, negative attitude of peers, lack of extra lessons/catch up programmes for teenage mothers, lack of optional tasks/tests for teenage mothers, lack of counselling and support for teenage mothers, and lack of structures for teenage mothers. On analysing data from educators, the following categories emerged: lack of cooperation from teenage mothers, lack of commitment by teenage mothers on academic matters, poor school attendance, lack of time for extra lessons, and lack of time for optional tasks/tests. The analysis of data from documents indicated habitual absenteeism, dodging of lessons (morning and afternoon), missing tasks and poor performance by teenage mothers. The key findings of the transcribed interviews indicated that teenage mothers had difficulty in balancing schooling and taking care of their children, because they lacked support from their educators, peers, parents and the community at large. In order for teenage mothers to succeed with their schooling, maximum support is needed from all stake holders, that is peers, parents, educators and the whole community structures.

No description available.

To shift the emphasis with regards to what is important in education, beyond achievement tests, it would be helpful to consider other possibilities for engaging students. Popular theatre as form of popular education is explored as an option for providing this better way in. I considered both critical and feminist pedagogies while being guided by the following questions: What are the possibilities and limitations of a popular theatre project implemented within an alternative school context? Why should we make space for such processes in schools? Through a participatory study using popular theatre within an alternative program for young mothers and pregnant teens, ethnodramatic scenes are presented, depicting themes that arose within the program. There were successes and failures; however, what was most notable were the constraints of the school system that may not allow for such processes to exist within current educational structures. Suggestions for future projects are proposed.

BAGGRUND: Ulykker er et af de alvorligste sundhedsproblemer for børn. Hvert år mister mellem 50 og 60 børn i Danmark livet ved ulykker og skadestuerne behandler omkring 160.000 børn for faldulykker, forgiftningsulykker, el-ulykker, kvælningsulykker med flere. Børn af unge mødre ser ud til at være betydeligt mere udsatte for at komme ud for ulykker end andre børn. FORMÅL: Undersøgelsen fokuserer på unge mødres risikooplevelse, holdning og adfærd i forhold til forebyggelse af børneulykker i hjemmet. METODE: Der er taget udgangspunkt i en induktiv kvalitativ undersøgelse med interview af 7 førstegangsfødende mødre i alderen 18-25 år med børn i alderen 3 måneder til 1 år. Alle mødre er af dansk oprindelse. I undersøgelsen indgik 2 mødre som havde fået piger og 5 mødre som havde fået drenge. RESULTATER: Mødrene anså ulykker som uundgåelige og vigtige for barnet, hvis de ikke havde alvorlige konsekvenser. Mindre ulykker eller skader gav barnet erfaringer, som kan anvendes, når barnet senere selv skal vurdere en eventuel risiko. Det var vigtigt for flere mødre, at deres børn bliver robuste, således at de ville kunne klare sig i det sociale fælles-skab i blandt andet daginstitutionen. Mødrene anså ikke deres egen alder som en afgørende faktor i forhold til ulykkesforebyggelse. Mødrene pegede i stedet på, at deres egne erfaringer med at udforske livet var afgørende for, hvor vigtig de anså ulykkesforebyggelse i hjemmet for at være. Undersøgelsen viste, at mødrene havde svært ved at forholde sig til hjemmet, som et sted, hvor der kan ske alvorlige ulykker til trods for, at de alle kunne udpege de farlige steder. Enkelte mødre havde indrettet hjemmet, således at barnet ikke var så udsat for at komme til skade, men flere mødre ønskede i stedet at lære børnene, hvad de må og ikke må til trods for, at mødrene ikke havde et klart billede af, hvornår disse forventninger til barnet var realistiske. KONKLUSION: Hvis mødres holdning til forebyggelse af ulykker skal påvirkes, vil det være nødvendigt sammen med moderen at drøfte, hvornår børn kan lære af erfaring, og hvornår børn bør beskyttes mod ulykker. / BACKGROUND: Accidents are one of the most serious health issues for children. Every year 50 to 60 children die in accidents and emergency departments treat approximately 160.000 children for accidents related to slips and falls, poisoning, electricity, suffocation etc. Children of young mothers appear to be significantly more exposed to accidents than other children. AIM: The survey targets the risk perception, attitude and behaviour of young mothers with regards to domestic child accidents. METHODOLOGY: The paper is based on an inductive qualitative survey with interviews of 7 first time mothers' ages 18-25 years with children ages 3 months to one year. All mothers are ethnically Danish. Of the 7 children, 2 were girls and 5 were boys. RESULTS: The mothers perceived accidents as inevitable and important for the child if they were not of a serious nature. Small accidents or injuries gave the child experiences, which could be used when the child at a later stage had to evaluate a potential risk. It was important for several mothers that their children grow up to be robust enabling them to take part in social activities, amongst others at day care institutions. The mothers did not see their own age as a factor related to accident prevention. Instead they draw attention to their own experiences as a crucial determinant of the degree of importance they attach to domestic accident prevention. The survey has shown that the mothers had trouble perceiving their home as a place where serious accidents could occur although they could all identify the potentially dangerous situations. A few mothers had arranged their home so as to lower the risk of their child having an injury but more instead desire to teach their child what it can and cannot do despite these mothers not having a clear picture of how realistic these expectations to the child were. CONCLUSION: To influence the mothers’ attitude to prevention of accidents it will be necessary to discuss with the mother which lessons children can learn from experience and when they are to be protected against accidents. / <p>ISBN 91-7997-159-8</p>