The author presents pregnant daughters’ reports about how their mothers influenced their own identities as mothers. Analysis of qualitative interview data suggested that mother–daughter relationships served as reference points for daughters’ ideologies about motherhood and were more varied than is often assumed. Daughters’ mixed feelings about their mothers and the role of this ambivalence in their own conceptions of motherhood may reflect the difficulties that mothers have in conforming to idealized images and expectations of motherhood. Clinical implications are discussed.
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