Migrant Mothers and Divided Homes: Perceptions of Immigrant Peruvian Women about Motherhood

Abstract

The incorporation of women into the labor market has transcended national boundaries ; the possibilities of communication and territorial mobility brought about by globalization have revitalized traditional feminine markets at the supra-national level, as in the cases of domestic service and prostitution. In this context, many women decide to migrate alone in search of greater economic security. This article explores the construction of motherhood by migrant Peruvian women in Chile whose children live far off from them. A qualitative methodology was used for the field research, including in-depth interviews with Peruvian mothers and a group discussion in which migrant Peruvian women in Chile-mothers and non-mothers-participated. The hypothesis guiding the study is that there is a tension between the culturally inherited image of motherhood and the specific practice of motherhood from afar. Migrant mothers experience but also resolve this tension between image and practice. The study concludes that the resolution of the struggle is usually found through an adjustment of the meaning of the traditional image of motherhood, rather than as a result of a cultural change that would question the suppositions underlying this image.