The DOI matches its Crossref record; 37 of the 37 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
“Is This What Motherhood is All About?”: Weaving Experiences and Discourse through Transition to First-Time Motherhood
Abstract
This article focuses on transition to first-time motherhood and explores the experiences of a group of women as they anticipate, give birth, and engage in early mothering. It illuminates how these women draw on, weave together, and challenge dominant strands of discourse that circumscribe their journeys into motherhood. Using qualitative longitudinal data, prenatal and postnatal episodes of transition are explored. The analysis and juxtaposing of these data reveal the different ways women anticipate and gradually make sense of becoming mothers. While there is a disjuncture between expectations and experiences for these new mothers, this article draws attention to the different ways women discursively position themselves through transition. It reveals how birth experiences can act as a discursive turning point and underscores the obduracy of some strands of dominant discourse. These findings contribute to a subtler and more nuanced understanding of the dynamic interplay between personal experience and gendered discourses.
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“motherhood often hinders women’s labour market performance and deteriorates their economic position (Miller, 2007; Pustułka, 2015)”
From Tightening early childcare choices – gender and social class inequalities among Polish mothers in Germany and the UK (2018) · cites this paper as Miller, 2007
Citations
Cites
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- Collins, Patricia Hill., 1994, Shifting the centre: Race, class and feminist theorising about motherhood
- Cosslett, Tess., 1994, Women and writing childbirth. Manchester, UK
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Bång, M., & Ekblad, S. (2008) · Lund University Publications Student Papers (Lund University)
Perrotta, A. (2015) · Open ULeth Scholarship (OPUS) (University of Lethbridge)
Representations and Experiences of HIV-positive Women on the Journey to Motherhood in Canada
Schütz, S. G. (2013) · Libraries and Cultural Resources (University of Calgary) · doi:10.5072/prism/27634
Masson, K. (2016) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo)
Govender, V. (2017) · Journal of Creativity in Mental Health · doi:10.1080/15401383.2016.1275994
A CONSTRUÇÃO HISTÓRICA DA IMAGEM DA “BOA MÃE”: O IMPERATIVO DA AMAMENTAÇÃO
Sales, A. T. B., Coutinho, D., & Bastos, A. C. D. S. (2015) · Revista Formadores · doi:10.13140/rg.2.1.3422.9205
McKinley, B. (2017) · OpenCommons - UConn (University of Connecticut)
Lemire, S. (2010) · ERA: Education and Research Archive (University of Alberta) · doi:10.7939/r37w7n
Bhutanese Refugees, Mothering, and Medicalization
Kim, A. F. (2019) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/s1057-629020190000020009
Niekrenz, Y. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-19861-9_15-1
Bagge, S. (2019) · UEA Digital Repository (University of East Anglia)
Comentário – Tornar-se mãe de um bebê prematuro: ressignificando a transição para a maternidade
Nunes, A., & Dazzani, M. V. M. (2020) · EDUFBA eBooks · doi:10.7476/9786556301938.0013
Faircloth, C. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-77403-5_1
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Ethier, K. L. (2023) · Gezinstherapie Wereldwijd · doi:10.1007/s12440-023-00197-1
Santino, H., & Monaghan, L. F. (2023) · Social Theory & Health · doi:10.1057/s41285-023-00199-7
Ramón, I. D. L. (2024) · Romance Quarterly · doi:10.1080/08831157.2023.2294498
Expiring, Eternal or Simply Monstrous? Identity of Bereaved Mothers: A Preliminary Insight
Rosochacka-Gmitrzak, M. (2024) · Roczniki Nauk Społecznych · doi:10.18290/rns2024.0027
Mangano, L. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-96-3616-7_3
Chaves, M., Teixeira, A. L., López, M. D. M.-L., & Donat, M. (2025) · Configurações · doi:10.4000/14526
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Transitioning Between Personal and Collective Worlds
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Teenage Motherhood as a Family Experience: Ambivalences Between Individual and Shared Worlds
Takei, R., Bastos, A. C., & Mendonça, B. I. D. O. (2012) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-61735-562-220251029
Becoming the Mother: Dialogs Within Selves
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(2016) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-68123-693-320251003
(2016) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-68123-693-320251011
Entangled nights: The affective, material, and cultural politics of co-sleeping
Hoffmann-Dumieński, K., & Neely, E. (2026) · Journal of Health Psychology · doi:10.1177/13591053261419693 · Cited by 1
Déterminants Psychosociaux et Culturels du Burnout Maternel et des Symptômes Dépressifs Périnataux
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Mary, S. M., Dunnett, S., Morgan, T., Coughlan, B., & Duschinsky, R. (2026) · Sociology · doi:10.1177/00380385261432876
The great paradox of parenthood: Meanings and experiences among adults in Chile
Novoa, C., Nazar, G., Félix Cova, S., Sepúlveda, G. L., & Bauta, A. A. L. (2026) · Family Relations · doi:10.1111/fare.70211
On (emotionally) involved fathers and family breadwinners. Being a dad and fatherhood in transition
Jäde, S. (2026) · Community Work & Family · doi:10.1080/13668803.2026.2739287
Odoi, E. Y. (2026) · Sociological Focus · doi:10.1080/00380237.2026.2627648
Barker, S. (2010) · Bournemouth University Research Online (Bournemouth University)
Metadata
- Authors
- Miller, T.
- Affiliations
- Oxford Brookes University (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Miller, Tina
- ORCID
- Miller, Tina
- Venue
- Gender & Society
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2007-06
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 337-358
- ISSN
- 0891-2432 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-3977
- OpenAlex
- W2119437676
- Cited by
- 244
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 19 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 14 · 2013: 17 · 2012: 16
- FWCI
- 15.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Gender & Society (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender and Feminist Studies
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes
- Keywords
- first-time motherhood, transition to motherhood, childbirth experience, prenatal experience, postnatal experience, gender discourse, maternal identity, motherhood discourse
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