Faculty Publications

I Take Care Of My Kids: Mothering Practices Of Substance-Abusing Women

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Gender and Society

Volume

13

Issue

3

First Page

347

Last Page

363

Abstract

This article examines 17 substance-abusing women's perceptions of their mothering practices in the context of a residential substance-abuse treatment program for women with children and pregnant women. Using in-depth semistructured interviews and observations of treatment groups, the participants' cultural knowledge about mothering is explored. Although the women in this study described how their substance-abusing lifestyle had a negative impact on their children, they also detailed practices that illustrated that they felt capable as parents. The women were silent about how race, gender, or class arrangements affected their lives; their stories, however, showed active avoidance and manipulation of the contemporary ideology of mothering.

Department

Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminology

Original Publication Date

1-1-1999

DOI of published version

10.1177/089124399013003005

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