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" Adoption talk and the social construction of motherhood "
Ruane, Sally
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Latin Dissertation
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| Record Number
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1094092
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| Doc. No
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TLets316928
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| Main Entry
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Ruane, Sally
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| Title & Author
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Adoption talk and the social construction of motherhood\ Ruane, Sally
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| College
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Durham University
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| Date
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1990
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| student score
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1990
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| Degree
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Ph.D.
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| Abstract
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This study investigates what can be learnt about motherhood from theadoption process. In particular, it focuses upon the experiences of naturalmothers who consider relinquishing newborn babies for adoption, and drawschiefly upon accounts given in semi -structured interviews by mothers andprofessionals involved in the adoption process. These accounts are analysedwith a view to finding out what meanings individuals confer on pregnancyand motherhood in specific circumstances; what explanations andjustifications are offered for decisions taken regarding the possibleplacement of the infant; what identity threats women experience as a resultof pregnancy outside marriage and their involvement in the adoptionprocess; what expectations exist regarding maternal behaviour and feelingin relation to the child; and how women conceive of themselves as motherswhen they lose their children through adoption. The rhetorical andperformative aspects of accounts offered, particularly in view of thesignificance of motherhood choices for women's respectability, areaddressed in some detail.Gaining access to the field has proved difficult, in part because someprofessionals believe only social workers should carry out such research.The difficulty of obtaining access in the ways at first intended led to amodification of the original research design. In this way, methodologicalissues have become a more prominent part of the study.The research has identified various processes through which motherhood issocially constructed in the adoption process. Justifications of thedecision taken make appeal to such values as the best interests of thechild, maternal self-sacrifice, realism, the irreplaceability of themother-child bond, and family integrity. Considerable variation ispermitted regarding the behaviour of the mother to her child, but strongexpectations exist concerning maternal feeling. Women believe they have acontinuing obligation to their 'lost' children, particularly to agree tocontact should the child so wish and to provide an account of the decision.
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| Subject
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Sociology
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| Added Entry
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Durham University
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