Title:
|
Teenage pregnancy and motherhood in Malta : a feminist ethnography
|
The aim of this thesis is to portray detailed accounts of how pregnant teenagers and
teenage mothers in a school-based service define their situation in the context of the
policies and services that frame their lives. The research is based in Malta, a small
Catholic island that has undergone rapid socio-demographic changes in the past two
decades that have shaped the context of teenage pregnancy. Through this study, I focus
on developing an understanding of pregnant teenagers' and teenage mothers'
perceptions on their sexual, reproductive and mothering choices and experiences, their
views and experiences of education, employment and welfare and the processes by
which 'oppression' and ' agency' are manifested in their lives.
The theoretical underpinnings of this thesis draw from feminist maternal theory. An
exploration of writings by prominent motherhood scholars has highlighted both the way
women are oppressed as mothers, and the way motherhood can serve as a site of
resistance. Furthermore, it has drawn attention to the importance of context in shaping
the meaning and experiences of motherhood. The conceptual framework of this study
relates to these theories through exploring both the ways in which young mothers'
experiences are shaped by their gender and social location as well as the way they
exercise power and agency through making rational and moral choices within their
social circumstances.
The methodology is based on a feminist critical ethnography, philosophically positioned
in social constructivism. The fieldwork was undertaken over a sixteen month period in
an alternative educational programme that offers both a pregnancy programme and a
mother and baby club for new mothers. Through participant observation and semistructured
interviews, I gathered data from 24 participants, ranging in age from 12 to 20
years, who attended either or both of these programmes.
The emergent themes are centred on the way young mothers concurrently accepted,
negotiated and challenged dominant ideas about motherhood. Through describing
participants' pathways to motherhood and the way they practiced mothering, I
demonstrate their awareness of the way they transgressed the boundaries of normative
ideologies, and the way they defended their motherhood identity, as they simultaneously
challenged negative stereotypes while attempting to assimilate through their mothering
practices. I further outline the diverse relationship trajectories experienced by young
mothers and how power struggles characterised most of the relationships with the men
in their lives, whether as intimate partners or as their children's fathers. Within
dynamics that were constantly shifting and evolving, the processes of oppression and
agency interweaved as participants negotiated tensions in different aspects of their
relationships. I also look at the education and employment experiences of these young
mothers, their expectations and aspirations in this arena as well as their views on
welfare. Placing the young women's representations at the centre, this thesis further
illustrates the heterogeneity of teenage mothers' experiences and emphasises the fact
that a 'one size fits all' policy approach is not always helpful in terms of responding
effectively to teenage mothers' needs.
|