Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 1 of 1
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
The Importance Of Motherhood Among Women In The Contemporary United States, Julia Mcquillan, Arthur L. Greil, Karina M. Scheffler, Veronica Tichenor
The Importance Of Motherhood Among Women In The Contemporary United States, Julia Mcquillan, Arthur L. Greil, Karina M. Scheffler, Veronica Tichenor
Bureau of Sociological Research: Faculty Publications
We contribute to feminist and gender scholarship on cultural notions of motherhood by analyzing the importance of motherhood among mothers and non-mothers. Using a national probability sample (N = 2,519) of U.S. women ages 25-45, we find a continuous distribution of scores measuring perceptions of the importance of motherhood among both groups. Employing OLS multiple regression, we examine why some women place more importance on motherhood, focusing on interests that could compete with valuing motherhood (e.g., education, work success, leisure), and controlling for characteristics associated with becoming a mother. Contrary to cultural schemas that view mother and worker identities as …