Guilt and compensation: The interplay between maternal emotions and parent–child relationships in migrant families

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AbstractObjectiveThe study aimed to explore how mother–child interactions shape Chinese rural–urban migrant women's maternal guilt, and vice versa.BackgroundMigrant mothers are documented to experience intense feelings of guilt due to long‐term separation from their children. Research on maternal guilt frequently conceptualizes guilt as a negative self‐judgement of mothers without considering the bidirectional interplay between mother–child interactions and mothers' guilt feelings.MethodData were drawn from semistructured interviews with 24 Chinese rural–urban migrant mothers who voiced profound guilt for leaving their children behind. The research was carried out following a grounded theory approach.ResultsResults demonstrate left‐behind children's power to elicit, exacerbate, and alleviate their mothers' guilt, which in turn prompts migrant mothers to engage in a wide range of compensatory practices to remedy their relationships with their children.ConclusionThese interpersonal dynamics highlight the relational nature of maternal guilt; the double victimization, both by public discourses and family members, experienced by migrant mothers; and the mutual support that can be offered between mothers and children.ImplicationsMother–child interactions should be considered when studying maternal guilt. Findings from this study have important implications for policy making and interventions to support migrant families.