The Making of Modern Motherhoods Dataset

Becoming a mother is a profound moment of personal change which ties us to the past, the future and to each other. Yet what it means to be a mother is changing and fragmenting in line with women's increased participation in work and education.

The Making of Modern Motherhoods project investigates how women negotiate mothering identities over generations and time. We combined longitudinal and cross-generational research designs to capture interplay of historical, generational and biographical processes. Methodological innovations include contextualising life history interviews with analyses of popular culture, and employing interdisciplinary and collective approaches to analysis and interpretation.

The study explores changes in lives over the twentieth century and the implications of these for social theory and policy including a recognition of the significance of divisions between women as well as the continued commonalities arising from experiences of reproduction and care. Data collected included 62 interviews with a diverse group of first time mothers (aged between 15 and 48) and 12 family case studies involving interviews with multiple generations and significant others. A sub-sample of 6 families were subsequently followed longitudinally as part of the Timescapes initiative in a 2 year project called 'The Dynamics of Motherhood'.