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Working Hard to Resist a 'Bad Mother' Label

Narratives of Non-resident Motherhood

University of East Anglia, UK, sandra.kielty{at}uea.ac.uk

Drawing upon interview data from a study investigating the experiences of 20 non-resident mothers in the UK, this article explores the narratives of two participants, one who volunteered to become the non-resident parent and one who lost residence against her will. The central focus of the article is concerned with participants' discursive management of their atypical situation. Specific attention is paid to the different ways in which these women presented their situations and how they positioned themselves in relation to dominant cultural scripts surrounding motherhood. It is argued that non-resident mothers are at risk of isolation as a consequence of social stigma and this may pose barriers to their taking a full and active part in the lives of their children. Suggestions are made whereby social workers might play a useful role in facilitating and supporting non-resident mothers within their locality. The issues raised have relevance for other western jurisdictions operating within a framework of gender-neutral family policy because, the number of non-resident mothers can be expected to rise in line with high family breakdown and divorce rates.

Key Words: discursive construction of experience • non-resident mothers • social worker support • stigma

Qualitative Social Work, Vol. 7, No. 3, 363-379 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1473325008093707


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