The Modern Mystique: Institutional Mediation of Hegemonic Motherhood

This study examines the means by which privileged mothers comply to the dominant expectations of intensive mothering. As women struggle with the complicated, and often contradictory, experience of meeting the demands of the dominant ideology, we examine the mediating role of an institution, in this...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological inquiry 2014-08, Vol.84 (3), p.472-491
Main Authors: Newman, Harmony D., Henderson, Angela C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Childrearing Practices
Content analysis
Dominant Ideologies
Ethnography
Females
Hegemony
Ideologies
Ideology
Mothers
Parents & parenting
Social support
Womens studies
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Summary:This study examines the means by which privileged mothers comply to the dominant expectations of intensive mothering. As women struggle with the complicated, and often contradictory, experience of meeting the demands of the dominant ideology, we examine the mediating role of an institution, in this case the most popular maternal support organization in the United States—Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS). Organizations such as MOPS create an ideal cultural site for reinforcing ideologies that promulgate unattainable standards of perfection. Data were collected from observations of two MOPS groups, in‐depth interviews, and ethnographic content analysis of organizational materials. This dominant organization supports mothers by discouraging them from questioning the expectations of intensive mothering or considering alternative methods of parenting, which reinforces intensive mothering as the gold standard of parenting.
ISSN:0038-0245
1475-682X
DOI:10.1111/soin.12037