Maternal Representations Research Articles

From maternal instinct to material girl: the doll in postwar Spain (1940s–50s)

In The Value of Things, Neil Cummings and Marysia Lewandowska state that, in a consumer culture, 'it is not objects that people really desire, but their lush coating of images and dreams' (2000: 76). What dreams and images are being desired when the longed for object is a child's plaything, such as a doll? The doll is popularly understood as a tool to aid in the formatting of gender, and, as such, primarily given to female children to awaken their maternal instinct. Miriam Formanek-Brunell notes that the study of dolls as cultural objects is overlooked precisely because 'dolls continue to be typically misunderstood as trivial artefacts of a commercialized girl's culture, static representations of femininity and maternity, generators only of maternal feelings and domestic concerns' (1993: 1). Formanek-Brunell proposes that 'dolls, like any other objects of ordinary life, can be seen as texts' (1993: 2). Dolls are cultural texts that, once analysed, can shed light on a variety of aspects of culture.

From maternal instinct to material girl: the doll in postwar Spain (1940s-50s)

In The Value of Things, Neil Cummings and Marysia Lewandowska state that, in a consumer culture, 'it is not objects that people really desire, but their lush coating of images and dreams' (2000: 76). What dreams and images are being desired when the longed for object is a child's plaything, such as a doll? The doll is popularly understood as a tool to aid in the formatting of gender, and, as such, primarily given to female children to awaken their maternal instinct. Miriam Formanek-Brunell notes that the study of dolls as cultural objects is overlooked precisely because 'dolls continue to be typically misunderstood as trivial artefacts of a commercialized girl's culture, static representations of femininity and maternity, generators only of maternal feelings and domestic concerns' (1993: 1). Formanek-Brunell proposes that 'dolls, like any other objects of ordinary life, can be seen as "texts"' (1993: 2). Dolls are cultural texts that, once analysed, can shed light on a variety of aspects of culture.

Interparental aggression and young children's representations of family relationships.

Children's maternal, self, and marital representations were examined in 46 children 3 1/2 to 7 years old using the MacArthur Story Stem Battery. Children drawn from agencies serving battered women expressed fewer positive representations of their mothers and themselves, were more likely to portray interparental conflict as escalating, and were more avoidant and less coherent in their narratives about family interactions than children from a nonviolent community sample. Interparental aggression uniquely predicted representations of conflict escalation and avoidance after accounting for parent-child aggression, and the two types of aggression had additive effects in predicting positive maternal representations. The results suggest that witnessing aggression in the family affects children's developing beliefs about close relationships and may be a process by which these experiences give rise to later problems in social and emotional functioning.

Mothers' representations of relationships with their children: relations with mother characteristics and feeding sensitivity.

To examine parenting representations and feeding interactions of mothers and their children with cerebral palsy (CP) and the extent to which mothers' representations predict their feeding behavior beyond other mother and child characteristics. Fifty-eight mothers of children with mild to severe CP ages 16 to 52 months were interviewed with an adapted form of the Parent Development Interview (PDI). Correlation and regression analyses examined relations between representations (compliance with parental requests, achievement, secure base, enmeshment, worry about the child's future, and emotional pain), demographic characteristics, diagnostic severity, and developmental status. Mothers with more compliance-related concerns showed less sensitivity, acceptance, and delight during feeding. Mothers experiencing more emotional pain displayed more hostility. Mothers reporting worries about the child displayed sensitivity and delight. Representations of compliance-related experiences and worry about the child's future accounted for significant increments in explained variance in mothers' feeding behavior, after we controlled for children's skills and abilities. Findings suggest maternal representations of relationships are associated with caregiving behavior for mothers of children with CP apart from other child and maternal characteristics and may be a useful focus for research and practice related to parenting children with special needs.

Prenatal maternal representations: Mothers at psychosocial risk

AbstractThe aim of the study was to explore differences in the content of prenatal mental representations between a risk group (n = 84) and a low‐risk group (n = 296) of pregnant women, enrolled from maternity care centers in southwestern Finland. The method used was semantic differentials of IRMAG (Interview of Maternal Representations During Pregnancy). The risk group was defined by means of questionnaire screens that concerned chemical dependency, depression, difficulties in social environment, and low social support. The ratings on all target subjects, i.e., child, self, partner, self‐as‐mother and own mother‐as‐mother, were significantly more negative in the risk group. The representation profiles of the groups differed: especially the ratings of partner and own mother‐as‐mother were more consistently and strongly negative among the risk mothers. © 2001 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

Mothers in Revolution: Political Representations of Maternity in Nineteenth-Century France

Mothers in Revolution: Political Representations of Maternity in Nineteenth-Century France

Maternal representation of the self as parent: connections with maternal sensitivity and maternal structuring

Maternal representations of the self as parent were assessed via the Parent Attachment and Peer Relationship Interviews (Bretherton, Biringen, Ridgeway, Maslin-Cole, & Sherman, 1989; Biringen & Bretherton, 1988) when children were 39 months of age. Maternal sensitivity and maternal structuring during mother-child interactions were assessed at 18, 24 and 39 months. The central question of this study was whether maternal representations were related to aspects of observed maternal sensitivity and maternal structuring. We found that maternal sensitivity at 18 months predicted later maternal representations of the self as parent. But beginning at 24 months and continuing to 39 months maternal structuring proved to be a more important predictor of maternal representations of the self, in particular maternal self-esteem, even after controlling for maternal sensitivity.

Adult Attachment Interview: linkages with dimensions of emotional availability for mothers and their pre-kindergarteners

Maternal attachment representations were assessed using the George, Kaplan, and Main (1985) Adult Attachment Interview (AAI), and emotional availability during observed mother-child interactions was assessed using the third edition of the Emotional Availability (EA) Scales (Biringen, Robinson, & Emde, 1998). This edition of EA included four parental scales and two child scales (Maternal Sensitivity, Structuring, Nonintrusiveness and Nonhostility; and Child Responsiveness and Child Involvement). Separate Hierarchical Multiple Regressions (HMRs) were computed to examine the prediction of the separate EA dimensions from demographic information, the AAI classification, and AAI scales. These analyses indicated that each of the EA dimensions (with the exception of maternal nonintrusiveness and nonhostility) was predicted by the AAI classification and/or AAI scales. Using three-step HMRs, the strongest prediction was for maternal sensitivity where 54% of the total variance in maternal sensitivity was explained by maternal education, AAI classification, and AAI ‘state of mind’ scales. Maternal nonhostility was predicted by maternal education and gender of the child, with lower- income mothers and mothers of girls demonstrating greater hostility.

The Manchester Child Attachment Story Task: relationship with parental AAI, SAT and child behaviour

The Manchester Attachment Story Task (MCAST) is a new method for eliciting the internal working model (IWM) of attachment representations in children between 5 and 7 years. The instrument is described in the companion paper, ‘A New Method of Evaluating Attachment Representations’. This paper reports initial findings on a non-clinical sample comparing the MCAST with concurrent maternal attachment representation, measures of child temperament and behaviour, and concurrent ratings on the Separation Anxiety Test (SAT). Ratings of disorganized attachment on the MCAST show association with Unresolved status on concurrent maternal Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and with independent teacher ratings of classroom behaviour. Child temperament shows an effect on the style of engagement with the interview but not the attachment ratings. Possible alternative explanations for the phenomena seen are discussed, along with potential applications of the instrument and directions for future research.

Two maternal representations: A study of Israeli adopted children.

Using an object relations perspective, the representations of birth and adopted mothers in a sample of 52 nonreferred adoptees were studied. To better understand the specific effects of adoption on the construction of 2 maternal representations, birth and adoptive mammal representation of adopted children was compared with that of nonadopted children. In addition, the effect of incongruous representations of birth and adoptive mothers on adoptees' externalizing and internalizing behaviors was explored. Compared with nonadopted children, adoptees' representations of the mothers appear as more concrete and less benign. Among adopted children, representations of the birth mothers were found to contain split negative aspects of the adoptive mothers. Moreover, the differences between birth and adoptive mother representations were found to associate with adoptees' externalizing behaviors.

Attachment in preterm infants and their mothers: Neonatal risk status and maternal representations

High-risk neonatal status, indexed by an intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), and maternal representations of past and present attachment relationships were examined as predictors of infant attachment in a sample of preterm infants. Participants included 50 19-month-old infants and their middle-class, predominantly African American mothers. A maternal-report questionnaire and a structured interview were used to assess past relationship history with mother and current relationship with infant, respectively. The Strange Situation Paradigm was used to assess attachment security. Multiple logistic regression analyses suggested that maternal representation of the infant—but not ICH or maternal childhood history—significantly predicted infant attachment security. ICH and maternal history of childhood rejection were predictive of disorganized infant attachment. The findings are consistent with previous data that suggest that maternal factors are more important than infant factors in determining infant attachment security. These data also suggest that neurological deficits may contribute to disorganized infant attachment. © 2000 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

Two maternal representations: A study of Israeli adopted children.

Two maternal representations: A study of Israeli adopted children.

The concordance between mother-infant attachment at 18 months and maternal attachment 10 years later among married and single mothers

This study examined the concordance between infant-mother attachment at 18 months, assessed in the Strange Situation, and maternal representations of attachment, assessed by the Adult Attachment Interview over 10 years later. The sample of 20 mother-infant dyads was selected for heterogeneity, and included 15 infants who were classified secure and 5 who were classified insecure at 18 months. Twelve of the mothers were married at the time of the infant's birth and 8 were single. The concordance between mother-infant attachment was found to be low. For the three ‘organised’ categories (avoidant/dismissing, secure/secure, and resistant/preoccupied), the observed match was 35% for the two-way secure-insecure split, and 30% for the three categories. Mother-infant concordance was significantly higher for the married-mother (50%) than the single-mother group (12.5%). The distribution of attachment classifications for the infants showed a somewhat above-average proportion of secure classifications (75%). The dist...

Experiences of a mother of a Down syndrome child

The present thesis was developed based on "The Social Representations Theory" and its purpose was to understand the mother's representation of the Down syndrome child. The subjects were nine mothers of Down syndrome patients between the ages of six and twelve, at a São Paulo specialized facility. The study material was obtained through semi-structured and individual interview, and examined by means of content analysis, particularly the thematic analysis. The results pointed to a maternal representation of the child with a predominance of negative components. Based on that perception the mother experienced ambivalent feelings and behaved in a overprotective way.

Maternal representation and care of infant sleep

Maternal reports about infant sleep care and ideas about the causes of awakening were obtained from telephone interviews with 104 middle class primiparae when their infants were 1 month and 1 year old. These reports were compared with their expectations about infant sleep before the birth of their child. It was found that most of the mothers were willing to ‘help’ their infants fall asleep, with 19 different kinds of techniques being spontaneously mentioned. Most of the techniques involved physical contact. The changes in technique from before birth to the end of the first year of life mainly concerned a decrease in the use of techniques involving holding the infant in the arms. From 1 month to 1 year, there was a decrease in rocking techniques, while at 1 year the use of a (bottle) feeding technique and taking the child into the parents' bed became apparent. The reasons mothers gave for infant awakenings varied from 1 month to 1 year. At 1 year, the most frequent reason was that the infant has ‘sufficient sleep’. Mothers' representations before the infant birth did not overlap with representations and reports of sleep handling after birth. Mothers were willing to apply and use a great variety of caring techniques that they perceived to be adjusted to the individual needs of their child. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Maternal representation and care of infant sleep

Maternal reports about infant sleep care and ideas about the causes of awakening were obtained from telephone interviews with 104 middle class primiparae when their infants were 1 month and 1 year old. These reports were compared with their expectations about infant sleep before the birth of their child. It was found that most of the mothers were willing to ‘help’ their infants fall asleep, with 19 different kinds of techniques being spontaneously mentioned. Most of the techniques involved physical contact. The changes in technique from before birth to the end of the first year of life mainly concerned a decrease in the use of techniques involving holding the infant in the arms. From 1 month to 1 year, there was a decrease in rocking techniques, while at 1 year the use of a (bottle) feeding technique and taking the child into the parents' bed became apparent. The reasons mothers gave for infant awakenings varied from 1 month to 1 year. At 1 year, the most frequent reason was that the infant has ‘sufficient sleep’. Mothers' representations before the infant birth did not overlap with representations and reports of sleep handling after birth. Mothers were willing to apply and use a great variety of caring techniques that they perceived to be adjusted to the individual needs of their child. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Maternal attachment representations, maternal sensitivity, and the infant-mother attachment relationship.

The role of maternal sensitivity as a mediator accounting for the robust association between maternal attachment representations and the quality of the infant-mother attachment relationship was examined. Sixty mother-infant dyads were observed at home and in the Strange Situation at 13 months, and mothers participated in the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) within the next 6 months. A strong association was found between AAI and Strange Situation classifications, and autonomous mothers were more sensitive at home than were nonautonomous mothers. Mothers in secure relationships were more sensitive at home than mothers in nonsecure relationships. Likewise, infants in secure relationships were more secure as assessed by the Waters' Attachment Q sort than infants in nonsecure relationships. A test of the mediational model revealed that maternal sensitivity accounted for 17% of the relation between AAI and Strange Situation classifications.

"Mothers of Tomorrow": The New Negro Renaissance and the Politics of Maternal Representation

"Mothers of Tomorrow": The New Negro Renaissance and the Politics of Maternal Representation

Mothers' representations of their 13-month-old twins and child-raising attitudes

The purpose of this study was to describe maternal representations of the twin sibling relationship and of the children's differences and similarities. Mothers' mental representations were also analyzed with regard to two aspects of their child-raising attitudes: individualization of childcare routines, and the question of differentiation by “external signs of twinship” (dress, toys, and first names). Data from interviews with 44 mothers of twins conducted 13 months after the birth were analyzed in terms of 8 categories—complicity, rivalry/jealousy, agonistic relations, dominance, imitation, physical appearance, development, and personality. A multiple correspondence analysis of the data pointed out that the first dimension describing the mothers' representations concerns the contrast between the “unalike” representation of dizygotic twins and the “alike” representation of monozygotic twins. The second dimension corresponds to the casual, twinship-minimizing representations generated by the twin condition. Two other dimensions express the issues of aggression and dominance. The relationship between the child-raising behavior of the mothers and their representations of the twin couple turned out to be more complex than expected. The results are discussed in terms of the specificity of the psychological issues facing mothers of twins. Defense mechanisms used by some mothers to cope with the exceptional nature of the twin phenomenon are also suggested. © 1998 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health

Representations of self and other in the narratives of neglected, physically abused, and sexually abused preschoolers.

The MacArthur Story Stem Battery was used to examine maternal and self-representations in neglected, physically abused, sexually abused, and nonmaltreated comparison preschool children. The narratives of maltreated children contained more negative maternal representations and more negative self-representations than did the narratives of nonmaltreated children. Maltreated children also were more controlling with and less responsive to the examiner. In examining the differential impact of maltreatment subtype differences on maternal and self-representations, physically abused children evidenced the most negative maternal representations; they also had more negative self-representations than nonmaltreated children. Sexually abused children manifested more positive self-representations than neglected children. Despite these differences in the nature of maternal and self-representations, physically and sexually abused children both were more controlling and less responsive to the examiner. The investigation adds to the corpus of knowledge regarding disturbances in the self-system functioning of maltreated children and provides support for relations between representational models of self and other and the self-organizing function that these models exert on children's lives.