The Ideal Motherhood: Quantitative Analysis of Perceptions of the Mother Role

Over time and throughout history, perceptions of the ideal motherhood have fluctuated according to differing cultures. In contemporary America, certain racial-ethnic groups have a disproportionate propensity to represent different economic strata. From this we can make assumptions about patterns of behavior that differ according to accepted cultural beliefs and attitudes within each strata. Therefore, we can assume that there would also be differences in the ideal motherhood with respect to beliefs about working and its influence on children and women's locus of life satisfaction. There are two sociologists who have explored this difference and each has done so by focusing on one racial-ethnic group. In her essay, Patricia Hill Collins "explores the relationship between the meaning of motherhood in African-American culture and black mother-daughter relationships" (Collins 42). On the other side, Sharon Hays explores in her writing, Why Can't a Mother Be More Like a Businessman?, the different spheres of work and motherhood and the challenges that working mothers face in trying to display the mother role as their primary obligation.

We can use Hays' article to be representative of mainstream culture (i.e. Caucasian culture) in order to better understand differences that exist between this frame of mind and the beliefs of Blacks. Hays argues that the large influx of mothers into the working world has created conflicts for these women because, while they are embracing the logic of the world of paid work (rational calculation, efficiency, and self interest), they are simultaneously attempting to embrace the logic of intensive mothering. Intensive mothering is a cultural phenomenon that has infiltrated its way into mainstream culture and it entails "images of the mother as the central caregiver who lavishes copious amounts of time, energy and material resources on child with a belief that any comparison of paid work and child-rearing activities is ludicrous" (Hays 207, 208). These emphases are representative of "the implosion of capitalism [where] the norms and practices of the capitalistic marketplace find their way into areas of life where they had not been before" (Hays 209). Therefore, what is perceived as appropriate child-rearing practices that maximize the potentiality of children is, in actuality, a manifestation of capitalistic ideologies in the practice of motherhood.

This understanding of motherhood is dissimilar to the findings of Collins. Collins looked at black culture and noted how child-rearing is a collective responsibility shared by women-centered networks. Above, we mentioned how mothering in the mainstream is perceived as an individual effort. However, Collins notes that "Black women's feelings of responsibility for nurturing the children in their own extended family networks have stimulated a more generalized ethic of care where black women feel accountable to all the black community's children" (Collins 49). In addition to using the resource of extended networks, black women's happiness includes a balance of work and family life. Therefore, we see that black mothers' cultural interpretation of acceptable mothering is quite contrary to the accepted beliefs and practices in the mainstream culture.

Based on those differences in the ideal motherhood between white and black culture, we can develop hypotheses on what would be the differing attitudes about certain aspects of child-rearing. Based on Collins' argument that "work for black women has been an important and valued dimension of Afrocentric definitions of Black motherhood," (Collins 48) we can hypothesize that blacks are less likely than whites to believe that a mother employed during the early years of child-rearing is harmful for the child's well-being. A second hypothesis that we can develop hinges on Collins' observation that "...women gain social influence through their roles as mothers, transmitters of culture, and parents for the next generation" (Collins 43). From this we can hypothesize that there might be a relatively small difference in perceptions toward the importance of family and children for women's life satisfaction between the two groups of black and white.

In order to obtain an empirical understanding of these two questions, we will use data from the General Social Survey (GSS). The GSS is conducted by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago every year or every other year since the early 1970's. The sample population is a nationally representative sample of civilian Americans ages 18 and over who live in non-institutionalized residence and speak English. The GSS data from 2002 uses a sample size of n=2765. What we will be doing is what is referred to as 'secondary analysis' where we will use the responses from the GSS to create a cross-tabulation in Microcase to see whether or not there are statistically significant computations which will either refute or uphold our hypotheses.

In the first hypothesis regarding attitudes towards the effects of maternal employment on young children, the GSS asks respondents their opinion on the following statement: A preschool child is likely to suffer if his or her mother works-1)agree 2)neither 3)disagree. When this question is cross-tabulated with race, (using n=1073) we observe several findings. First, 29.1% of black respondents agreed with the statement while 49% disagreed. Secondly, 39.5% of white respondents agreed while 34.7% disagreed. The Chi-square statistic (a test that helps us decide whether the percentage of difference between the two groups is significant) for the cross-tabulation is equal to 11.679 with a p-value equal to .003 (the probability that the difference found between the two groups occurred just by chance or error). Since the p-value is With these findings in mind, we move on to the second hypothesis regarding the importance of family and children for women's life satisfaction. The GSS asks respondents to state their opinion to this statement: A job is all right, but what women really want is a home and children-1)agree 2)neither 3)disagree. Using a sample size of n=1060, we can observe several findings. First of all, 43.8% of black respondents agreed with the statement while 31.5% disagreed. Secondly, 38.7% of white respondents agreed while 31.0% disagreed. The Chi-square for this computation was equal to 2.204 with a p-value equal to .332. From these computations, we observe that there is a weak p-value which shows too much error indicating that there is indeed no statistically significant difference between black and white perceptions regarding the importance of family and children for women's life satisfaction.

Using the observations from the cross-tabulations of the two questions from the GSS, we can see how Collins' ideas about maternal employment are supported by the data indicating that our hypothesis was correct and that there is a significant difference in terms of race and perceptions of working mothers' influences on children. In addition, we see that Collins' ideas on motherhood as being a source of social influence and our hypothesis on whether or not there are racial differences are supported by the GSS data on women's life satisfaction in regards to having a family and children showing that there is no statistical difference in terms of race. The differing results are explained by the truth that even though there are racial differences on the appropriate method of mothering (first hypothesis), mothering itself is a universal phenomenon that is perceived as central irregardless of race-ethnicity (second hypothesis). This line of reasoning based on cultural interpretation and is in addition to the empirical analysis of the GSS data which is very straightforward and easy to understand. However, a better understanding of racial differences and Americans' attitudes toward motherhood and the locus of women's happiness would be achieved by adding qualitative interview data from a representative sample of citizens and seeing whether or not their professed perceptions further support or contradict findings at the national level.

Collins, P. H. (1991). The meaning of motherhood in black culture and black mother-daughter

relationships. In P. Bell-Scott (ed.) Double Stitch. Boston: Beacon Press, 42-60.

Hays, Sharon. (1996) Why Can't a Mother Be More Like a Businesswoman? The Cultural

Contradictions of Motherhood. Yale University Press.