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Weaving dreamcatchers: mothering among American Indian women who were teen mothers
Author(s) -
Palacios Janelle F.,
Strickland Carolyn J.,
Chesla Catherine A.,
Kennedy Holly P.,
Portillo Carmen J.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.12180
Subject(s) - gender studies , psychology , psychological intervention , developmental psychology , medicine , nursing , sociology
Aims The aim of this study was to explore the mothering experience and practice among reservation‐based adult American Indian women who had been adolescent mothers. Background Adolescent American Indian women are at an elevated risk for teen pregnancy and poor maternal/child outcomes. Identifying mothering practices among this population may help guide intervention development that will improve health outcomes. Design A collaborative orientation to community‐based participatory research approach. Methods Employing interpretive phenomenology, 30 adult American Indian women who resided on a Northwestern reservation were recruited. In‐depth, face‐to‐face and telephone interviews were conducted between 2007–2008. Findings Women shared their mothering experience and practice, which encompassed a lifespan perspective grounded in their American Indian cultural tradition. Four themes were identified as follows: mother hen, interrupted mothering and second chances, breaking cycles and mothering a community. Mothering originated in childhood, extended across their lifespan and moved beyond mothering their biological offspring. Conclusion These findings challenge the Western construct of mothering and charge nurses to seek culturally sensitive interventions that reinforce positive mothering practices and identify when additional mothering support is needed across a woman's lifespan.