Bittersweet Connections: Informal Social Networks as Sources of Support and Interference for Adolescent Mothers

Richardson, Rhonda A.; Barbour, Nancy; Bubenzer, Donald L.

doi:10.2307/584900

Cited by 36 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The data reported in this paper indicate that female kin, male partners, and friends are prominent members of the social support networks of urban African-American adolescent mothers-a finding that is consistent with results of other studies examining social networks in similar populations (Panzarine, 1986; Richardson et al, 1991; Rogeness, Ritchey, Alex, Zuelzer, & Moms, 1981; Unger & Wandersman, 1985). By contrast, male kin other than brothers are noticeably absent from the young women's support networks.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

“…Conflict with family members, which is common for all adolescents as they struggle toward independence, is heightened for adolescent mothers by the stress a baby introduces into the family system (Musick, 1993;Richardson, Barbour, & Bubenizer, 1991). Parents of adolescent mothers may resent new responsibilities and do not know whether to treat their offspring as a child or as a responsible adult.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Support networks of adolescent mothers: Effects on parenting experience and behavior

Voight

Hans

Bernstein

1996

Infant Ment. Health J.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 78%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Support networks of adolescent mothers: Effects on parenting experience and behavior

Voight

Hans

Bernstein

1996

Infant Ment. Health J.

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“…This was consistent with the literature on this issue. Richardson, Barbour and Bubenzer (1991), for example, identified the care -givers' usurpation of the teenage mother's role as one of the major sources of familial and personal conflict common to teenage parenthood which may lead to psychological distress. They argued that in such cases, school-aged parents may have to fight for authority over the childespecially when negotiating differences between grandparents' traditional child-care techniques and more current methods.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The general picture to emerge from this research is that social support may be beneficial, at times inconsequential, and occasionally detrimental (Chen, Telleen & Chen, 1995;Davis & Rhodes, 1994;Richardson, Barbour & Bubenzer, 1991;Thompson & Peebles-Wilkins, 1992). The work of Thompson and PeeblesWilkins (1992) is particularly interesting in that it is one of the few research studies to focus on the relative merits of societal support for black teenage mothers from disadvantaged communities.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Intragroup Accounts of Teenage Motherhood: A Community Based Psychological Perspective

Parekh

Rey

1997

South African Journal of Psychology

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Using community based and women-centred perspectives, this study explored experiences of unplanned motherhood during adolescence. Ten African teenage mothers from a semi-rural area in KwaZulu-Natal volunteered to meet once a week for eight weeks to discuss their experiences of pregnancy and motherhood. The findings are discussed in the context of the effect of teenage motherhood on self, on family and peer relationships, traditional Zulu customs, and community support. Current relationships with partners and concerns about the future are also reported. The results indicate the need for school-based programmes and parent groups for adolescent mothers that will enhance their ability to examine options with a view to establishing a trajectory towards better life outcomes. Community health workers were also identified as resource personnel for enabling teenage mothers in rural and semi-rural areas to cope with their concerns and develop a way of understanding them.

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“…Lack of maternal support could be accounted for by personality differences or a general history of discord (deAnda and Becerra 1984;Richardson et al 1991;Rogeness et al 1981). Another possibility, and one of more direct interest to behavioral ecologists, is that mothers' lack of support is tied to a reproductive conflict.…”

mentioning

confidence: 96%

The Place of Proximity

Scelza

2011

Hum Nat

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The mother-adult daughter relationship has been highlighted in both the social sciences and the public health literature as an important facet of social support networks, particularly as they pertain to maternal and child health. Evolutionary anthropologists also have shown positive associations between support from maternal grandmothers and various outcomes related to reproductive success; however, many of these studies rely on proximity as a surrogate measure of support. Here I present data from the Puerto Rican Maternal and Infant Health Survey (PRMIHS) comparing geographic proximity of mother and daughter with a self-reported measure of mother-to-daughter support. These two measures were used to predict infant health outcomes as well as various measures of instrumental and emotional aid provided during pregnancy and after birth. Primary support was shown to have a positive effect across the analyses, whereas geographic proximity was associated with an increased risk of infant mortality and low birth weight as well as reduced odds of receiving support. This paradox was then examined using a combination variable that teased out the interactions of maternal support and proximity. Women who were geographically close to their mothers but who did not consider them a primary source of support had increased odds of infant death and low birth weight, and were less likely to receive either tangible or intangible forms of aid, while women whose mothers were both close and primary showed uniformly positive outcomes. These results place the role of propinquity within the larger context of social support and highlight the need for more detailed studies of social support within evolutionary anthropology.

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Bittersweet Connections: Informal Social Networks as Sources of Support and Interference for Adolescent Mothers

Cited by 36 publications

References 16 publications

Support networks of adolescent mothers: Effects on parenting experience and behavior

Support networks of adolescent mothers: Effects on parenting experience and behavior

Intragroup Accounts of Teenage Motherhood: A Community Based Psychological Perspective

The Place of Proximity

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