Mothering on the web: A feminist analysis of posts and interactions on a Chilean Instagram account on motherhood

Abstract

Social networking sites (SNS) have become important spaces during the early years of parenting. They allow users to access information, share experiences and provide an opportunity to establish support networks. In this article we present the results of our research on a Chilean motherhood account on Instagram. The research, which takes a feminist approach, used Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to analyze discourses around “good mothering”, and the role of this communication site in this process. We present the results in three sections: a) “Positioning in debates about motherhood”; b) “Real motherhood and maternal love”; and c) “Interactions as regulatory mechanisms”. The main findings suggest that these SNS, through interactions between the account holder and their followers, reproduce dominant discourses of what is considered to be “good mothering” which both sustain asymmetrical gendered power relationships and challenge such power relations. Furthermore, we conclude that although SNS may appear to be an inclusive relational space, the regulatory mechanisms of the sites circumscribe who, and how one, can participate in this space.