New mothers and social support: A mixed-method study of young mothers in Australia

Abstract

Motherhood can bring joy and enrichment but may also be associated with stress leading to poor health outcomes and low life satisfaction. Young mothers are a group particularly at risk of adverse outcomes, including increased social, economic, and health disadvantage following early entry to motherhood. This article reports results from a mixed-method study examining variations in levels of social support reported by mothers. Cross-sectional analyses of survey data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children showed that young mothers (aged less than 25 years when their child was born) generally reported higher levels of social support, but poorer family relationships than older mothers. In-depth interviews with nine young mothers provided insights into how they perceived support under these circumstances. Our research shows that young mothers often experienced difficult childhoods and strained relationships with parents, but many reconnected with their mothers after pregnancy and saw them as important sources of support.

Keywords

Australia disadvantage mothers parenting social support young parents

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) (2019) Births. Cat. no. 3301.0. URL (consulted 31 August 2020): https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/3301.0

AIFS (Australian Institute of Family Studies) (2015) The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children Annual Statistical Report 2015. Melbourne, Vic.: Australian Institute of Family Studies. URL (consulted 31 August 2020): https://aifs.gov.au/‌publications/longitudinal-study-australian-children-annual-statistical-report-2015

Angley

Divney

Magriples

Kershaw

(2015) ‘Social Support, Family Functioning and Parenting Competence in Adolescent Parents’, Maternal and Child Health Journal 19(1): 67–73.

Astbury

(1994) ‘Making Motherhood Visible: The Experience of Motherhood Questionnaire’, Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology 12(2): 79–88.

Baird

O’Brien

(2015) ‘Dynamics of Parental Leave in Anglophone Countries: The Paradox of State Expansion in Liberal Welfare Regimes’, Community, Work and Family 18(2): 198–217.

Boulden

(2010) What it Takes: Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Young People. Sandgate, QLD: Association of Women Educators Inc.

Boyd

B.A.

(2002) ‘Examining the Relationship between Stress and Lack of Social Support in Mothers of Children with Autism’, Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities 17(4): 208–15.

Brady

Perales

(2016) ‘Hours of Paid Work among Single and Partnered Mothers in Australia: The Role of Child Care Packages’, Journal of Family Issues 37(3): 321–43.

Brand

Morrison

Down

(2015) ‘“You Don’t Know Half the Story”: Deepening the Dialogue with Young Mothers in Australia’, Journal of Research in Nursing 20(5): 353–69.

10.

Braun

Clarke

(2006) ‘Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology’, Qualitative Research in Psychology 3(2): 77–101.

11.

Cairney

Boyle

Offord

D.R.

Racine

(2003) ‘Stress, Social Support and Depression in Single and Married Mothers’, Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 38(8): 442–9.

12.

Caldwell

C.H.

Antonucci

T.C.

Jackson

J.S.

(1998) ‘Supportive/Conflictual Family Relations and Depressive Symptomatology: Teenage Mother and Grandmother Perspectives’, Family Relations 47(4): 395–402.

13.

Cano

Perales

Baxter

(2019) ‘A Matter of Time: Father Involvement and Child Cognitive Outcomes’, Journal of Marriage and Family 81(1): 164–84.

14.

Cooley

M.L.

Unger

D.G.

(1991) ‘The Role of Family Support in Determining Developmental Outcomes in Children of Teen Mothers’, Child Psychiatry and Human Development 21(3): 217–34.

15.

Creswell

J.W.

Plano Clark

V.L.

Gutmann

Hanson

(2003) ‘Advanced Mixed Methods Research Designs’, pp. 209–40 in Tashakkori

Teddlie

(eds) Handbook on Mixed Methods in the Behavioral and Social Sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

16.

Crnic

K.A.

Greenberg

(1990) ‘Minor Parenting Stresses with Young Children’, Child Development 61(5): 1628–37.

17.

Crnic

Low

(2002) ‘Everyday Stresses and Parenting’, pp. 243–67 in Bornstein

M.H.

(ed.) Handbook of Parenting, 2nd edn. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

18.

Davis

(2016) ‘Generational Change and Continuity among British Mothers: The Sharing of Beliefs, Knowledges and Practices c.1940–1990’, pp. 207–23 in Pooley

Qureshi

(eds) Parenthood between Generations: Transforming Reproductive Cultures. New York: Berghahn.

19.

Edin

Kefalas

(2011) Promises I Can Keep: Why Poor Women Put Motherhood before Marriage. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

20.

Gibb

S.J.

Fergusson

D.M.

Horwood

L.J.

Boden

J.M.

(2014) ‘The Effects of Parenthood on Workforce Participation and Income for Men and Women’, Journal of Family and Economic Issues 35(1): 14–26.

21.

Harknett

K.S.

Hartnett

C.S.

(2011) ‘Who Lacks Support and Why? An Examination of Mothers’ Personal Safety Nets’, Journal of Marriage and Family 73(4): 861–75.

22.

Held

Rutherford

(2012) ‘Can’t a Mother Sing the Blues? Postpartum Depression and the Construction of Motherhood in Late 20th-century America’, History of Psychology 15(2): 107–23.

23.

Henly

J.R.

Danziger

S.K.

Offer

(2005) ‘The Contribution of Social Support to the Material Well-being of Low-income Families’, Journal of Marriage and Family 67(1): 122–40.

24.

Hoffmann

Vidal

(2017) Supporting Teen Families: An Assessment of Youth Childbearing in Australia and Early Interventions to Improve Educational Outcomes of Young Parents. Life Course Centre Working Papers Series 2017-12. Indooroopilly, Qld: University of Queensland. Brisbane.

25.

Holtzman

DeClerck

Turcotte

Lisi

Woodworth

(2017) ‘Emotional Support During Times of Stress: Can Text Messaging Compete with In-person Interactions?’, Computers in Human Behavior 71: 130–9.

26.

Kaplan

B.H.

Cassel

J.C.

Gore

(1977) ‘Social Support and Health’, Medical Care 15(5): 47–58.

27.

Kappeler

E.M.

(2015) ‘Adolescent Health and Teen Pregnancy in the United States: A Progress Report’, Public Health Reports 130(3): 196–8.

28.

Kawachi

Berkman

L.F.

(2001) ‘Social Ties and Mental Health’, Journal of Urban Health 78(3): 458–67.

29.

Kershaw

Murphy

Lewis

Divney

Albritton

Magriples

, et al. (2014) ‘Family and Relationship Influences on Parenting Behaviors of Young Parents’, Journal of Adolescent Health 54(2): 197–203.

30.

Kim

T.H.M.

Rotondi

Connolly

Tamim

(2017) ‘Characteristics of Social Support among Teenage, Optimal Age, and Advanced Age Women in Canada: An Analysis of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth’, Maternal and Child Health Journal 21(6): 1417–27.

31.

Leahy-Warren

McCarthy

Corcoran

(2012) ‘First-time Mothers: Social Support, Maternal Parental Self-efficacy and Postnatal Depression’, Journal of Clinical Nursing 21(3–4): 388–97.

32.

Lee

Gramotnev

(2006) ‘Predictors and Outcomes of Early Motherhood in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health’, Psychology, Health & Medicine 11(1): 29–47.

33.

Lewis

L.N.

Skinner

S.R.

(2014) ‘Adolescent Pregnancy in Australia’, pp. 191–203 in Cherry

A.L.

Dillon

M.E.

(eds) International Handbook of Adolescent Pregnancy. New York: Springer.

34.

Logsdon

M.C.

Gagne

Hughes

Patterson

Rakestraw

(2005) ‘Social Support during Adolescent Pregnancy: Piecing Together a Quilt’, Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing 34(5): 606–14.

35.

Martin

Hamilton

Osterman

Driscoll

(2019) ‘Births: Final data for 2018’, in National Vital Statistics Reports, 68(13). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

36.

McCall

(2005) ‘The Complexity of Intersectionality, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 30(3): 1771–800.

37.

McVeigh

Smith

(2000) ‘A Comparison of Adult and Teenage Mother’s Self-esteem and Satisfaction with Social Support’, Midwifery 16(4): 269–76.

38.

Nolan

Hendricks

Towell

(2015) ‘Social Networking Sites (SNS): Exploring Their Uses and Associated Value for Adolescent Mothers in Western Australia in Terms of Social Support Provision and Building Social Capital’, Midwifery 31(9): 912–19.

39.

Nomaguchi

K.M.

Milkie

M.A.

(2003) ‘Costs and Rewards of Children: The Effects of Becoming a Parent on Adults’ Lives’, Journal of Marriage and Family 65(2): 356–74.

40.

ONS (Office for National Statistics) (2019) ‘Births in England and Wales: 2018’. URL (consulted 31 August 2020): https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/livebirths/bulletins/birthsummarytablesenglandandwales/latest

41.

Pahl

Pevalin

D.J.

(2005) ‘Between Family and Friends: A Longitudinal Study of Friendship Choice’, British Journal of Sociology 56(3): 433–50.

42.

Passino

A.W.

Whitman

T.L.

Borkowski

J.G.

Schellenbach

C.J.

Mazwell

S.E.

Keogh

, et al. (1993) ‘Personal Adjustment during Pregnancy and Adolescent Parenting’, Journal of Adolescence 28(109): 97–123.

43.

Pearlin

L.I.

Menaghan

E.G.

Lieberman

M.A.

Mullan

J.T.

(1981) ‘The Stress Process’, Journal of Health and Social Behavior 22(4): 337–56.

44.

Plage

Perales

Baxter

(2016) ‘Doing Gender Overnight? Parenthood, Gender and Sleep Quantity and Quality in Australia’, Family Matters 97: 73.

45.

Quinlivan

J.A.

Luehr

Evans

S.F.

(2004) ‘Teenage Mother’s Predictions of Their Support Levels before and Actual Support Levels after Having a Child’, Journal of Pediatric Adolescent Gynecology 17(4): 273–8.

46.

Ruppanner

Perales

Baxter

(2019) ‘Harried and Unhealthy? Parenthood, Time Pressure, and Mental Health’, Journal of Marriage and Family 81(2): 308–26.

47.

Schoen

Kim

Y.J.

Nathanson

C.A.

Fields

Astone

N.M.

(1997) ‘Why Do Americans Want Children?’, Population and Development Review 32(2): 333–58.

48.

Seimyr

Edhborg

Lundh

Sjögren

(2004) ‘In the Shadow of Maternal Depressed Mood: Experiences of Parenthood During the First Year after Childbirth’, Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology 25(1): 23–34.

49.

Skinner

S.R.

Marino

J.L.

(2016) ‘England’s Teenage Pregnancy Strategy: A Hard-won Success’, The Lancet 388(10044): 538–40.

50.

Thoits

P.A.

(1995) ‘Stress, Coping, and Social Support Processes: Where Are We? What Next?’, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, extra issue: Forty Years if Medical Sociology: The State of the Art and Directions for the Future, 53–79.

51.

Thomson

Kehily

M.J.

Hadfield

Sharpe

(2011) Making Modern Mothers. Bristol: Policy Press.

52.

Unger

D.G.

Wandersman

L.P.

(1985) ‘Social Support and Adolescent Mothers: Action Research Contributions to Theory and Application’, Journal of Social Issues 41(1): 29–45.

53.

Wahn

E.H.

Nissen

(2008) ‘Sociodemographic Background, Lifestyle and Psychosocial Conditions of Swedish Teenage Mothers and Their Perception of Health and Social Support during Pregnancy and Childbirth’, Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 36(4): 415–23.

54.

Wiggins

Rosato

Austerberry

Sawtell

Oliver

(2005) Sure Start Plus National Evaluation. London: Social Science Research Unit.

55.

Wilson

Huntington

(2006) ‘Deviant (M)others: The Construction of Teenage Motherhood in Contemporary Discourse’, Journal of Social Policy 35(1): 59–76.

56.

Yavorsky

J.E.

Kamp Dush

C.M.

Schoppe-Sullivan

S.J.

(2015) ‘The Production of Inequality: The Gender Division of Labor across the Transition to Parenthood’, Journal of Marriage and Family 77(3): 662–79.

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.02 MB