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Invisible Mothers: A Content Analysis of Motherhood Ideologies and Myths in

Magazines

Article in Sex Roles · January 2003

DOI: 10.1023/A:1023905518500

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Sex Roles, Vol. 49, Nos. 1/2, July 2003 (°

C 2003)

Invisible Mothers: A Content Analysis of Motherhood

Ideologies and Myths in Magazines

Deirdre D. Johnston1,3 and Debra H. Swanson2

The purpose of this study is to identify prevalent motherhood ideologies and myths in con-
temporary women’s magazines. The results indicate that contemporary magazines promote
a traditional motherhood ideology, yet perpetuate motherhood myths that undermine moth-
ers who stay home. Traditional motherhood, which excludes Women of Color and employed
mothers, is promoted. Mothers are almost exclusively presented in the domestic, rather than
the public or integrated domestic–public, contexts. Myths that employed mothers are busy,
tired, and guilty, and that employed mothers neglect and are unattached to their children, are
not upheld. However, negative myths that at-home mothers are confused, overwhelmed, and
interested only in superficial topics are upheld in the magazines analyzed. The implications of
these results on the perpetuation of patriarchy are discussed.

KEY WORDS: ideology; magazines; motherhood; women; myths; media; content analysis.

In the last century, American culture promoted a mothers in current women’s magazines as a source of
romanticized ideal to which all mothers are supposed cultural myths and ideologies that define contempo-
to aspire. The ideal is the full-time, at-home, middle- rary motherhood.
class White mother fully engaged and fulfilled in the
private sphere (Boris, 1994). Yet, at the turn of the MOTHERHOOD IDEOLOGIES
twenty-first century, a number of motherhood ideolo-
gies compete for ascendancy. Research on the sources To explore ideologies of motherhood, it is useful
of motherhood ideologies has led to the historical to recognize that motherhood is not biologically de-
analysis of self-help literature (Zimmerman, Holm, termined or socially ascribed. Motherhood is a social
& Haddock, 2001), child-rearing manuals (Dally, and historical construction (Bassin, Honey, & Kaplan,
1982; Eyer, 1996), and expert advice (Ehrenreich 1994; Glenn, 1994; Risman, 1998). Coontz (1992) ar-
& English, 1978). Other researchers have explored gued that the “traditional family” with a wage-earner
the role of socialized gender roles (Chodorow, 1978; father and a stay-at-home mother is an historical and
Johnson, 1988) and cultural expectations (Dally, 1982; cultural aberration. Culture tells us what it means to
Maushart, 1999; Rich, 1976) on the construction of be a mother, what behaviors and attitudes are appro-
motherhood. Relatively little attention has been paid priate for mothers, and how motherhood should shape
to the role of the media in constructing motherhood relationships and self-identity.
ideologies (Keller, 1994). The purpose of this study Jayne Buxton (1998) described the adversar-
is to explore the portrayal of employed and at-home ial climate of competing ideologies as the “mother
war.” She documented how stereotypical character-
1 Department of Communication, Hope College, Holland, izations of the Superwoman (who efficiently man-
Michigan.
2 Department of Sociology, Hope College, Holland, Michigan.
ages her household and children with the same
3 To whom correspondence should be addressed at Department of cold-hearted equanimity she employs in the business
Communication, Hope College, Holland, Michigan 49422-9000; world) are pitted against the Earth Mother (who,
e-mail: johnston@hope.edu. barefoot and wearing kaftans, feeds her children

21 0360-0025/03/0700-0021/0 °
C 2003 Plenum Publishing Corporation
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22 Johnston and Swanson

home-grown organic foods with an everpresent be- and unconscious assumption that is so widely ac-
atific smile). Each motherhood camp justifies its own cepted that its historical and cultural origins are for-
ideology by co-opting the values of the other: “I am a gotten. As such, myths of motherhood are presented
better mother if I work”; “I am resisting the dominant as “natural,” “instinctual,” and “intuitive” as opposed
culture and exercising my free choice and power as a to “cultural,” “economic,” “political,” and “histori-
woman to stay at home with my children.” cal” (Hrdy, 2000). Ideologies are born when myths
A dominant ideology supports the cultural hege- are combined into coherent philosophies and politi-
mony by creating social expectations for a social cally sanctioned by the culture.
group. For example, a patriarchial ideology of moth- Myths of employed and at-home mothers abound
ering denies women identities and selfhood outside in the culture. A cursory glance at the motherhood
of motherhood (Glenn, 1994). Feminist scholars have section of a bookstore is revealing. Employed moth-
explored how current motherhood ideologies sus- ers are tired, busy, and guilty (e.g., The Third Shift,
tain patriarchy (Rothman, 1994), perpetuate the eco- Bolton, 2000; Motherguilt, Eyer, 1996). At-home
nomic dependency of middle-class women and the mothers live in a state of bliss (e.g., Home by Choice:
economic exploitation of working-class and migrant Raising Emotionally Secure Children in an Insecure
women (Chang, 1994), and project White, middle- World, Hunter, 2000; Mitten Strings for God, Kenison,
class mothers” experiences as universal and ideal 2000). On the negative side, at-home mothers suf-
(Collins, 1994). Culture defines and rewards “good fer from “mommy mush brain” due to lack of in-
mothers,” and it sanctions “bad mothers.” tellectual stimulation (e.g., “I told one man, ‘I’m a
There are many mothers who fall outside the club mother at home,’ and was greeted with the sight of
of “good motherhood” as defined by dominant moth- his back as he wandered off to find someone more
erhood ideologies. A number of scholars have noted important to talk to”—from the book jacket of Stay-
the relegation of teenage mothers (Bailey, Brown, & ing Home: From Full-Time Professional to Full-Time
Wilson, 2002), older mothers, single mothers, and les- Parent, Sanders & Bullen, 1992). Employed moth-
bian mothers (Lewin, 1994) to the bottom rungs of ers neglect their children, or at the very least have
the hierarchy of motherhood (DiLapi, 1989). A num- difficulty meeting children’s basic needs of adequate
ber of researchers have addressed both the historical food, clothing, protection, supervision, and security
and contemporary exclusion of African, Asian, and (e.g., Parent by Proxy: Don’t Have Them If You
Latina American mothers from the cult of domestic- Won’t Raise Them, Schlessinger, 2000). Employed
ity that defines American motherhood (Collins, 1994; mothers put their family relationships at risk and
Dill, 1988; Glenn, 1992). jeopardize mother–infant bonding (cf. Bad Mothers,
There are clearly racial and class biases in the so- Ladd-Tayloer & Uamnsky, 1998; and Mother–Infant
cial construction of good and bad mothers. Solinger Bonding: A Scientific Fiction, Eyer 1992, that chal-
(1994) found that whereas Black single mothers lenge the veracity of these myths). In contrast, at-
are labeled deviant by the dominant culture, White home mothers are bonded and attached to their chil-
single mothers are considered “troubled” but “re- dren, to the point of being overinvolved, controlling,
deemable.” Although the conventional motherhood and enmeshed (e.g., When Mothers Work: Loving
ideology maintains that mothers should not work out- Our Children Without Sacrificing Our Selves, Peters,
side the home, economically or financially privileged 1997). On the positive side, at-home mothers are ever
mothers continue to hire working-class women, and present and therefore competent in protecting and
Women of Color, who are often mothers themselves, supervising their children (e.g., Children First, Leach,
to perform the more arduous childcare work (Blair- 1995).
Loy, 2001; Chang, 1994). Thus, the construction of Scholars have sought to identify the underlying
motherhood, particularly in the form of dominant ide- causes of maternal myths (Chodorow, 1978; Hays,
ologies, may have little correspondence to the lived 1996; Mauschart, 1999; McMahon, 1995; Rich, 1976;
social realities of mothers. Ruddick, 1983, 1989; Thurer, 1995; Trebilcot, 1983).
These scholars agree that the primary cause of ma-
ternal myths is the perpetuation of patriarchy. The
MOTHERHOOD MYTHS maternal bliss myth—that motherhood is the joyful
fruition of every woman’s aspirations—perpetuates
The building blocks of ideologies are myths. systems of patriarchy by attributing any maternal un-
Barthes (1972) defined a myth as an uncontested happiness and dissatisfaction to failure of the mother.
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Invisible Mothers 23

A good mother is a happy mother; an unhappy mother In another study of magazine content, we
is a failed mother. This myth attributes responsibility (Johnston & Swanson, 2003) found that mothers
for the conditions of motherhood to the individual, are subjected to double-bind communication—that
not the system. is, contradictory messages that promote a particular
behavior or identity and simultaneously condemn a
mother for enacting it. For example, at-home moth-
REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN ers were lured with motivations for domestic suc-
IN WOMEN’S MAGAZINES cess but were presented as incompetent in achiev-
ing this success. The same mothers that are lauded
Although there are a number of popular press for staying home full-time and fulfilling their biologi-
claims that women’s magazines promote feminism cally guaranteed maternal instincts are the targets of
(Wolfe, 1991), political involvement (Crabtree, 1996), magazine messages that undermine their natural abil-
and a liberal agenda (Media Report to Women, 1997), ities as mothers by making them dependent upon ex-
empirical studies of magazine content are consistent pert advice for the most simple mothering decisions.
in their assessment that women’s traditional repre- Double-bind communication undermines both moth-
sentation in women’s general interest magazines has ers’ ability to mother and mothers’ ability to change
changed relatively little over the second half of the the conditions of motherhood.
twentieth century (M. Ferguson, 1983; Keller, 1994; Keller’s three-decade historical theme analysis
Murphy, 1994; Walsh, 1999). of women’s magazines specifically addressed mother-
Murphy (1994) identified four themes in tradi- ing ideologies (Keller, 1994). Keller suggested a tradi-
tional general interest women’s magazines: (a) the tionalist ideology in the 1960s, a feminist ideology in
normal world is White and middle to upper-middle the 1970s, and both a neotraditionalist and economic
class; (b) women are domestic; (c) women are ex- nurturer ideology in the 1980s. Although current re-
pected to be beautiful; and (d) consumerism is a focus search on motherhood further explicates these ide-
of women’s lives. Murphy compared the traditional ological themes, no recent studies have assessed the
women’s magazines with the content in magazines prevalence of these mothering ideologies in women’s
that targeted the “new [non-traditional] woman”: Ms., magazines.
New Woman, Working Woman, and Lear’s. Murphy The traditional mother paradigm is character-
concluded that “It may now be acceptable to be in- ized by hierarchical control, expectations of mater-
dependent, politically involved, sexually active, com- nal sacrifice, and delegation of childcare and domes-
mitted to a career; even to be over forty. But it’s only tic responsibilities to the mother (Schlessinger, 2000).
acceptable if you look right and have the necessary The traditional mother is White, educated, married,
accoutrements” (p. 126). The White, middle-class, middle-class, and does not work outside the home
beauty-obsessed, consumerist images are prevalent (Keller, 1994). The traditional mother ideology in-
in three of the four alternative magazines analyzed corporates the “Strict Father Model” (Lakoff, 1996),
(Murphy, 1994). Walsh (1999) also reported a lack of which is founded on the premise that to combat the
political, social, economic, and nondomestic content evils of the world, children must develop a strong
in 10 popular women’s magazines: Ladies Home Jour- moral character through self-discipline, self-restraint,
nal, Glamour, Good Housekeeping, Working Woman, and self-control. This model of parenting presumes
Redbook, McCall’s, Cosmopolitan, Family Circle, proprietary or possessive control of children and the
Women’s Day, and Better Homes and Gardens. As parental right to exclude outside interference (Smith,
such, the messages in women’s magazines may be less 1983).
a reflection of society than a means for perpetuating The feminist model of motherhood promotes
social myths of gender. parent-shared child and domestic responsibilities,
If, as research suggests, women’s magazines per- rewarding employment, and empowering familial
sist in promoting a traditional gender ideology, what relationships (Ehrensaft, 1983; Held, 1983). The femi-
mother ideology is being promoted? Kaplan (1990, nist model presumes public sphere and community in-
1992) found that popular culture images of mothers volvement in raising children (Valeska, 1983), a child-
in the 1980s present women as career-oriented, or as centered culture in which children and motherhood
mothers, but seldom as both. Female sexuality and are valued (Kittay, 1983), and accessible support ser-
work are still constructed as antithetical to mother- vices to help mothers provide the best care for chil-
hood, according to Kaplan. dren and themselves (A. Ferguson, 1983). A mother
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24 Johnston and Swanson

with a sense of self-efficacy acquired through the pur- enactment of what Bakhtin (1981) calls “ideological
suit of outside or personal interests and rewarding performance.” Magazine discourse presents concen-
work is likely to be, according to this model, a better trated and highly seductive images and text that com-
mother (Barnett & Rivers, 1998; Hanson & Sloane, municate cultural expectations for women’s maternal
1992; Peters, 1997). roles.
Neotraditionalists are mothers who resign from Content analysis of media is a way to uncover
the workplace and return to the hearth (Dagnan, cultural meanings (Thomas, 1994). Ideologies and
1999). Neotraditionalists co-opt feminist values by myths are assumed, often unconscious, highly valued,
justifying their decisions in terms of personal fulfill- and rigorously defended. As such, they are not
ment and empowered choice (Keller, 1994). Child- always identifiable in behavioral practices or able
centered reasons are used to rationalize, and even to be articulated by individual informants (Thomas,
to romanticize, staying home full-time (Hunter, 1994). The lack of current research on the repre-
2000). In neotraditionalist families children receive sentation of mothers in women’s magazines, and the
intensive attention and mother involvement, and current climate of competing motherhood ideologies
their development is carefully monitored accord- and contradictory myths (Buxton, 1998; Maushart,
ing to the latest child-raising books, magazines, 1999), prompts us to explore the following research
and websites (e.g., www.mom.com—feminist stay-at- questions.
home site; www.bizymoms.com—at-home business
ideas; www.stayhomemom.biz—everything for the RQ1: What motherhood ideologies are promoted in
stay-at-home mom; www.mochamoms.org—stay-at- women’s magazines? Is there a dominant mother-
home Mothers of Color). hood ideology?
According to the economic nurturing ideology, RQ2: How are maternal myths within the dominant
motherly love is demonstrated in part by provid- ideological frame, or competing ideological frames,
ing additional goods and services to children (Keller, portrayed?
1994). Although working-class mothers have histori-
cally comprised the majority of women in the work-
force, economic justifications for working are now METHOD
being adopted by middle- and upper-middle-class
mothers who seek to buy experiences for their chil- Magazine subscription data was obtained from
dren. Financial rationalizations for working imply Mediamark Research Inc. (1999) magazine audience
that mothers would stay home full-time were it eco- estimates. The two highest subscription magazines for
nomically feasible. Economic nurturers are more apt women of childbearing age are Good Housekeeping
than other employed mothers to balance competing and Family Circle. Parents magazine is the highest sub-
work–family demands by compromising their career scription parenting magazine. Although Family Fun
aspirations (Keller, 1994). Economic nurturers are and Working Mother could not compete with the sub-
more likely to fit Gilbert’s conventional and modern scription rates of the traditional women’s magazines,
dual-career family patterns in which mothers retain they are the top magazines ranked by composition of
primary responsibility for domestic duties (Gilbert, employed mothers (Mediamark Research Inc., 1999).
1994). Composition refers to the percentage of total read-
Women’s magazines are but one source of iden- ers of the publication who have a particular attribute.
tity information for mothers in our culture, yet their These five magazines were selected for analysis to rep-
importance, as a source of motherhood ideologies, resent the highest subscription traditional women’s
should not be underestimated. Indeed, the sheer per- magazines, the highest subscription parenting maga-
vasiveness of the medium—in grocery store check- zines, and the magazines with the highest composition
out lines, doctors’ offices, and the home—warrants its of employed mothers.
analysis and attention. It matters little whether moth- One issue per quarter over the 12-month period
ers model these performances or use them as sites of of the study (September 1998, December 1998, March
resistance to the dominant ideology of motherhood— 1999, and June 1999) was selected for analysis. The
either way, according to Corrigan and Sayer (1985), entire content of each publication was analyzed for
discursive practices distort and constrain our percep- mother representations. A mother-related text unit
tions of reality, and even our perceptions of the plau- was defined as an article, advertisement, shortie (i.e.,
sible and the possible. Women’s magazines are one short take-out box or an article less than one full
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Invisible Mothers 25

page), letter/testimonial, or question-and-answer col- azine or is unique to the representation of mothers.

umn that contained mother references. The entire text Race was coded as follows: (a) one or more Women of
unit (e.g., article) was the unit of analysis for coding. Color; (b) White women only; or (c) no race identity
Twenty percent of the sample was used to assess uni- information provided.
tizing reliability. Three coders, who worked indepen- Employment status was determined by refer-
dently, achieved high unitizing reliability (U = .99) ences to employment in the text and/or inferred from
for what constituted a text unit that represented moth- the portrayal of women in uniforms, business suits
ers (Guetzkow, 1950). The analysis of the 20 issues and briefcases, or in an office context. Text units were
that comprised the sample for this study yielded 1,139 coded as representing at-home mothers if no employ-
mother-related text units. ment information was presented.
In addition, to compare the portrayal of moth- Public/private sphere was coded as public sphere,
ers and nonmothers in magazine content, all adver- private sphere, both public and private sphere, or nei-
tisements were coded. Two hundred forty advertise- ther sphere. Public sphere was coded as anywhere
ments portrayed women with no reference to mother- outside the home, yard, or car. Domestic sphere was
hood. Nonmother ads included no identity images or coded as home, yard, or car. Both public/private
text that depicted the women in relation to children sphere context included any reference to working at
or maternal status. Unless otherwise noted, analyses home, taking children to work, any representation of
were conducted on the sample of mother-related text a mother in a public setting, or engaged in any public
units (n = 1,139). When specifically indicated, follow- issue.
up analyses of mother and nonmother comparisons Maternal myths perpetuate expectations of ma-
in advertising (n = 692) was useful in some cases to ternal bliss, selfless interaction with children, and ful-
determine if a particular trend in representation was fillment of aspirations through private-sphere inter-
typical of all women in magazines or uniquely targeted ests (Maushart, 1999; Ruddick, 1989; Thurer, 1995;
to mothers. Trebilcot, 1983). Text units were coded for the por-
Text units were coded for motherhood ideolo- trayal of mothers’ emotional states, mothers’ interac-
gies and maternal myths. Initial attempts to employ tive roles with children, and topics of interest targeted
Keller’s coding scheme for motherhood ideologies to employed and at-home mothers. The coding cate-
(e.g., traditional, feminist, neo-traditional, and eco- gories were derived using a Q-sort technique. Five in-
nomic nurturing; Keller, 1994) proved ineffective. dependent coders sorted text units into piles reflecting
Discussions regarding justifications for working (e.g., similarities and differences in emotional state, mother
feminism or economic nurturance), or justifications role, and topic. Consistent piles were used to construct
for moving into or out of the workforce (e.g., tradition- coding categories as described below.
alist or neotraditionalist) were so rare that Keller’s Mothers’ emotional states were coded as
coding scheme (Keller, 1994) was collapsed to re- happy/unhappy, proud/not proud, busy/not busy,
flect the more simplified distinctions between tra- confused–overwhelmed/not confused–overwhelmed,
ditional and nontraditional motherhood ideologies. guilty/not guilty, tired/not tired, and angry/not angry.
Traditional/nontraditional ideology was defined by Emotional states were not represented in every text
mothers’ race, employment status, and representa- unit; “not relevant” was a coding category for each
tion in public and/or private spheres. The literature emotional state.
review of motherhood ideologies suggests that the Text units were also coded for the dom-
traditional “good-mother” ideology is associated with inant mother role presented: (a) necessity
being White, unemployed, and involved only in the provider—providing food, clothing, transporta-
private sphere (Collins, 1994; Coontz, 1992; Glenn, tion; (b) protector—protecting child from disease,
1994). accidents, strangers, bad influences; (c) playmate—
Race was analyzed using the subsample of adver- providing entertainment, one-on-one interaction;
tisements. Advertisements were used for this analy- (d) innovator—creating new child-raising ideas;
sis because race information was typically conveyed (e) teacher—challenging the child intellectually and
in photos rather than text. Moreover, the advertis- experientially; (f) loving nurturer—demonstrating
ing sample allowed for comparisons of the racial rep- affection, emotional support, comfort; (g) worker—
resentation of mothers and nonmothers in magazine volunteering or reflecting an employment role;
content. It is important to determine whether a racial (h) disciplinarian; (i) spiritual/moral advisor; and
bias is associated with all representations in a mag- (j) other/no reference/mixed-role presentations.
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26 Johnston and Swanson

Text units were coded for topic fo- azines. Employed mothers were presented in 12%
cus according to the following categories: (n = 140), and at-home mothers were portrayed in
(a) fun/entertainment/luxury—entertaining tips, 88% (n = 999), of all mother-related text units.
recreational activities, and promotion of consumer The representation of employed mothers signifi-
luxury items; (b) food/home/practical necessity— cantly varied by magazine, χ 2 (8, N = 1,139) = 163.55,
promotion of economical and practical home p < .001. A comparison of standardized residuals re-
products, information and instructions regard- vealed that Working Mother magazine incorporated
ing home, food, and domestic duties; (c) health; significantly more representations of employed moth-
(d) relationships; (e) body and beauty topics; (f) psy- ers than did other magazines (see Table I). Forty per-
chological improvement; (g) employment issues; cent (n = 56) of the employed mother portrayals ap-
(h) social, political, or educational interest; and peared in Working Mother magazine. The represen-
(i) other. tation of mothers in the other four magazines varied
Three coders, who worked independently, from 9% (n = 12) in Family Fun to 19% (n = 27) in
achieved high intercoder reliability (Scott’s pi = .86 Parents magazine.
averaged over 37 variables). Scott’s pi (1955) was Mothers were presented in traditional contexts in
used to assess intercoder reliability because it cor- the magazines. Mothers were most often portrayed in
rects for the number of categories used and for the the domestic sphere (84%, n = 927). Fifteen percent
expected frequency of categories used (Krippendorf, (n = 172) of mothers were portrayed in both public
1970; Scott, 1955). Group discussion among the coders and domestic contexts, and only 1% (n = 10) of moth-
and the authors was used to further refine coding cat- ers were portrayed in the public sphere. Three percent
egories and resolve discrepancies. (n = 30) of all text units contained no reference to ei-
ther a public or domestic context.
The representation of mothers in traditional con-
RESULTS texts significantly varied by work status, χ 2 (2, N =
1,109) = 170.96, p < .001. The results reveal dramatic
Motherhood Ideology: Traditional versus differences: 89% (n = 863) of at-home mothers were
Untraditional typically presented exclusively in the home, car, or
yard, compared to 45% of employed mothers (n =
One indicator of traditional motherhood ideol- 63). Thirty percent (n = 42) of employed mothers
ogy is race. Of all advertisements in the 20 magazines were presented in the public sphere, compared to less
analyzed, 12% (n = 64) represented one or more than 1% (n = 7) of at-home mothers. Fifty-three per-
Women of Color, and 88% (n = 470) presented White cent (n = 74) of employed mothers were portrayed
women only. The remaining 158 advertisements in- in both public and private spheres, compared to only
cluded no race identity information. 10% (n = 99) of at-home mothers. Thirty text units
Employment contexts, however, reflected contained no information regarding private/public
greater diversity—at least for nonmothers. When em- sphere context.
ployed nonmothers were depicted with race identity Mothers were seldom presented in the public
in advertising, 60% (n = 21) were White, and 40% sphere. An example of employed mothers in an in-
(n = 14) were Women of Color. Yet when we looked tegrated public–private context is the article text:
at mothers only (n = 363), Women of Color disap- “Our jobs help us expand our minds, take pride in
peared. A crosstabulation of mothers’ work status our achievements—and pay the bills. They also help
by race in magazine ads revealed that 89% (n = 23) our children learn. Here, readers share the impor-
of working mothers and 95% (n = 120) of mothers tant things that they, as working moms, can teach
in the home were White, χ 2 (4, N = 363) = 26.30, their children.” An example of at-home mothers in
p < .001. There is no significant difference in an integrated public–private context is a side bar enti-
the representation of race in advertisements by tled “Expert Tips for Quitting,” which recommended
magazine, χ 2 (4, N = 534) = 6.43, p = .169. Yet, that women at home with children volunteer, stay in-
motherhood, as represented in magazine advertise- formed about developments in their field, stay con-
ments, appears to be the exclusive domain of White nected with former colleagues, developed new talents,
America. and take classes. Public sphere representations of at-
The results further indicate that employed moth- home mothers were rare. Even articles that at first
ers are grossly underrepresented in women’s mag- glance seemed to reflect a woman’s involvement in
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Invisible Mothers 27

Table I. Chi-Square Cell Standardized Residuals for All Variables on the Road” are magazine articles that target em-
by Magazine ployed, not at-home mothers.
Ideology variables GH FC P FF WM The representation of mothers in public or pri-
Race vate spheres significantly varied by magazine (see
White 0.0 −0.8 0.2 0.1 0.3 Table I). Working Mother magazine, not surpris-
Women of Color 0.0 2.5 −0.5 −0.2 −1.0 ingly, was most likely to present women in integrated
Work status public–private sphere settings, followed by Family
Work 2.6 3.1 −4.4 −3.6 7.8
Circle. Parents magazine was least likely to present
Stay-home −1.0 −1.2 1.6 1.4 −2.9
Setting women in integrated settings.
Domestic −0.8 −0.9 1.4 0.8 −2.1
Public −0.1 −0.8 −0.2 0.4 0.4 Maternal Myths
Integration 1.8 2.3 −3.1 −1.9 4.7
Emotional states
Maternal myths frequently reflect expected emo-
Happy −0.5 −0.1 −1.7 3.1 −0.3
Not happy 0.8 0.2 2.5 −4.7 0.4 tional states of mothers. Five hundred ninety-seven
Proud −0.6 0.5 −1.6 3.1 −0.9 mother-related text units were coded for emotional
Not proud 0.8 −0.6 2.1 −4.1 1.1 state. Information regarding emotional state of the
Confused 1.1 −0.2 2.6 −5.1 0.8 mother was not apparent in the remaining text units
Not confused −0.7 0.1 −1.7 3.4 −0.6
(n = 542). In general, magazine content portrayed
Busy 0.9 0.1 −0.7 −2.9 3.7
Not busy −0.4 0.0 0.3 1.3 −1.7 mothers as happy (70%, n = 416), proud (63%, n =
Guilty 0.9 −1.2 2.0 −2.0 −0.9 377), not busy (82%, n = 409), and not confused
Not guilty −0.2 0.3 −0.5 0.5 0.2 (69%, n = 411). Portrayals of mother as guilty (6%,
Tired 0.7 0.3 1.3 −2.5 −0.2 n = 35), tired (6%, n = 38), and angry (5%, n = 31)
Not tired −0.2 −0.1 −0.3 0.6 0.1
Angry 1.7 −0.5 0.7 −1.0 −1.2
were not prevalent.
Not angry −0.4 0.1 −0.2 0.2 0.3 However, a series of crosstabulations of moth-
Mother–child interactive role ers’ work status by dichotomous emotional states (see
Necessity provider 1.7 0.9 1.6 −3.1 0.9 Table II) revealed that employed mothers were signif-
Protector −0.1 0.9 3.5 −4.1 −1.4 icantly more likely to be presented as happy, busy, and
Playmate −2.3 −2.2 −0.35 8.1 −0.7
Innovator −1.1 −0.6 −1.5 5.7 −3.3
proud, whereas at-home mothers were more likely to
Teacher 0.4 0.2 −0.2 −1.4 1.6 be depicted as confused–overwhelmed. There were
Loving nurturer 1.2 −0.3 0.0 −2.6 2.5 no significant differences in the depictions of work-
Disciplinarian 0.2 −0.9 2.1 −2.5 0.0 ing mothers and at-home mothers as guilty, tired, or
Worker 0.2 1.2 −2.2 −2.6 6.0 angry.
Spiritual/moral advisor −0.2 2.5 −1.3 −1.6 2.6
Other 0.4 −0.7 −0.4 1.3 −0.9
Most of the significant differences in emotional
Magazine topics state by magazine were between Family Fun and Par-
Fun/entertainment −3.7 −3.6 −4.7 12.0 −1.3 ents (see Table I). Family Fun was more likely than
Food & home/ 2.3 1.5 0.7 −2.6 −1.0 Parents to present mothers as happy, proud, and not
practical necessities confused. Parents was more likely to present mothers
Health 0.5 −0.9 4.8 −4.7 −2.3
Relationship 0.6 2.8 0.0 −4.5 3.2
as not happy, not proud, confused, and guilty. Working
Work issue 0.4 0.1 −2.7 −3.0 8.1 Mother was most likely to present mothers as busy.
Psychology/self-improvement 2.4 1.1 1.2 −2.4 −1.7 A second indicator of maternal myths is moth-
Body beauty −1.2 2.0 1.5 −1.8 −0.7 ers’ interactive role with children. In order of fre-
Other 0.4 0.6 2.1 −2.7 −1.1 quency, mothers were portrayed in the role of (a) ne-
Note. Standardized residuals are used to determine the location cessity provider (28%, n = 310); (b) protector (18%,
and magnitude of variance within a significant chi-square table n = 200); (c) playmate (17%, n = 193); (d) inno-
with numerous cells (Kennedy, 1992). Standardized residuals can vator (14%, n = 153); (e) teacher (9%, n = 101);
function as z statistics with a residual greater than 1.96 reflecting a
significant source of variance (Kennedy, 1992).
(f) loving nurturer (6%, n = 64); (g) volunteer or em-
ployed worker (5%, n = 51); (h) disciplinarian (3%,
n = 34); (i) spiritual/moral advisor (1%, n = 11); and
public issues, upon further inspection, revealed that (j) other/no reference/mixed-role presentations (2%,
the woman involved is an employed mother. For ex- n = 22).
ample, “Why You Should Be in Your Child’s School” There were significant differences in the mother
and “Women Who Make a Difference: Saving Lives roles associated with at-home and employed mothers
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28 Johnston and Swanson

Table II. Mothers’ Emotional State by Mothers’ Work Status were depicted in the protector and playmate roles,
% Employed % At-home and few of the at-home mothers were presented in
mother mother % Total the loving nurturer role.
Happy (n = 416) a
There were significant differences in mother roles
Row 25.5 74.5 100 by magazines (see Table I). Family Fun emphasized
Column 84.8 65.8
Not happy (n = 180)
the playmate role and de-emphasized the necessity
Row 10.6 89.4 100 provider, protector, loving nurturer, and worker roles.
Column 15.2 34.2 Parents was most likely to present the protector and
Busy (n = 107)b disciplinarian roles. Working Mother was most likely
Row 50.5 49.5 100 to present the worker, loving nurturer, and spiritual/
Column 43.2 11.2
Not busy (n = 490)
moral advisor roles.
Row 14.5 85.5 100 The topics addressed in the magazines also
Column 56.8 88.8 reflect myths about mothering. The most preva-
Confused (n = 185)c lent topics in mother-related text units were as fol-
Row 12.4 87.6 100 lows: (a) fun/entertainment/luxury (31%, n = 351);
Column 18.4 34.4
Not confused (n = 411)
(b) food/home/practical necessity (26%, n = 291); (c)
Row 24.8 75.2 100 health (18%, n = 201); and (d) relationships (16%,
Column 81.6 65.6 n = 180). Categories of body and beauty topics,
Guilty (n = 35)d psychological improvement, employment issues, and
Row 14.3 85.7 100 other facts/tidbits were collapsed as they comprised
Column 4.0 6.4
Not guilty (n = 562)
less than 3% (n = 39) of the total mother-related text
Row 21.4 78.6 100 unit topics. No mother-related text units were found
Column 96.0 93.6 for social, political, or educational interest.
Proud (n = 377)e There are significant differences in the topics as-
Row 27.6 72.4 100 sociated with employed and at-home mothers, χ 2 (7,
Column 83.2 58.0
Not proud (n = 219)
N = 1,139) = 252.718, p < .001. Twenty-seven per-
Row 9.6 90.4 100 cent (n = 38) of all employed mothers representa-
Column 16.8 42.0 tions were concerned with relational maintenance,
Tired (n = 38) f compared to 14% (n = 140) of all at-home mothers.
Row 13.2 86.8 100 Examples of relational maintenance text units in-
Column 4.0 7.0
Not tired (n = 558)
clude “Don’t let work get between you and your
Row 21.5 78.5 100 marriage” and “Out of Control: Suddenly a nor-
Column 96.0 93.0 mally happy preschooler throws a tantrum a day.”
Angry (n = 31)g Twenty-four percent (n = 34) of all employed mother
Row 16.1 83.9 100 representations referenced work or volunteer issues,
Column 4.0 5.5
Not angry (n = 565)
compared to 1% (n = 5) of at-home mother repre-
Row 21.2 78.8 100 sentations. An example of a work issue text unit that
Column 96.0 94.5 targets both at-home and employed mothers is “The
Total 100 100 Zig-Zag Woman: She’s a stay-at-home mom when the
a χ 2 (3, kids need her most, a working mom when it works for
N = 597) = 16.89, p < .001.
b χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 68.67, p < .001. her family.” At-home mothers were referenced sig-
c χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 11.80, p < .001. nificantly more often than employed mothers in asso-
d χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 0.99, p < .32.
ciation with having fun (33%, n = 329 vs. 16%, n =
e χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 27.07, p < .001.
f χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 1.50, p < .15.
22), food/home/practical necessities (27%, n = 269
g χ 2 (3, N = 597) = 0.46, p < .34. vs. 17%, n = 24), and health (19%, n = 189 vs. 5%,
n = 7). An example of a food/home/practical necessi-
ties text unit that targets at-home moms is headlined:
(see Table III). Employed mothers were depicted “The healing power of housework. Stressed out? On
most frequently in the mother roles of worker, ne- the edge? About to lose it? Do a load of laundry.”
cessity provider, and loving nurturer. In contrast, at- The topics more than any other variable seem to
home mothers were depicted as necessity providers, be driven by the particular magazine (see Table I).
protectors, and playmates. Few employed mothers An analysis of standardized chi-square residuals
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Invisible Mothers 29

Table III. Mother–Child Interactive Role by Mothers’ Work Status

% Employed mother (n = 139) % At-home mother (n = 984) % Total
Necessity provider (n = 310)
Row 9.0 91.0 100
Column 20.1 28.7
Protector (n = 200)
Row 4.0 96.0 100
Column 5.8 19.5
Playmate (n = 193)
Row 5.2 94.8 100
Column 7.2 18.6
Innovator (n = 153)
Row 12.4 87.6 100
Column 13.7 13.6
Teacher (n = 101)
Row 9.9 90.1 100
Column 7.2 9.2
Loving nurturer (n = 64)
Row 23.4 76.6 100
Column 10.8 5.0
Disciplinarian (n = 34)
Row 5.9 94.1 100
Column 1.4 3.3
Worker (n = 51)
Row 80.4 19.6 100
Column 29.5 1.0
Spiritual/moral advisor (n = 11)
Row 45.5 54.5 100
Column 4.0 1.0
Total 100.0 100.0
Note. χ2 (9, N = 1123) = 263.200, p < .001. Nineteen text units contain no information on mother–child interac-
tive role.

indicated that Family Fun, as the name of the maga- they disappear. The exclusion of Women of Color
zine suggests, overwhelmingly covered topics related from representations of motherhood and family per-
to fun and entertainment. Parents magazine covered petuate myths and stereotypes that only Whites value
health issues but did not cover issues of fun or work. family, home, and involved parenting. Moreover, the
Good Housekeeping covered topics related to food, lack of diversity in mother representations privileges
home, and self-improvement, whereas Family Circle White middle-class hegemony. Glenn (1994) wrote
covered relationships and body/beauty issues. Work- that the social construction of motherhood differs by
ing Mother featured work issues, but also relation- race, ethnicity, and class such that “White, middle-
ships; it was least likely to cover health issues. class children have the highest value, and are deemed
worthy of full-time, stay-at-home mothers to nurture
DISCUSSION them to their full potential” (p. 20). Marketing justi-
fications for the absence of Women of Color are not
Motherhood Ideologies valid. Dates (1995) found that the African American
market is very savvy; they “spend a higher percentage
It is clear that women’s magazines persist in of their money on consumer goods than their White
the promotion of traditional constructions of mother- counterparts, showed a preference for top-line mer-
hood. The results of our study indicate that mothers chandise, and demonstrated a willingness to try new
are presented in magazines as White, at-home moth- products . . . Yet, at many levels the advertising indus-
ers, who seldom venture outside the domestic sphere. try continues to act as if this market does not exist”
In regard to race, the results are compelling. In (p. 132).
advertisements, Women of Color are represented in When we turned to the employment status
employment contexts, but in the realm of motherhood of mothers in women’s magazines, we found that
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30 Johnston and Swanson

employed mothers were absent. Despite the fact that mothers are tired, busy, and guilty is not upheld in
Census data confirms that 44% of mothers work full- their representation in the women’s magazines we
time and another 18% work part-time (T. Lewin, analyzed.
2000), only 12% of the mother representations in the Differences in the mythical construction of em-
magazines we analyzed referenced employed moth- ployed and at-home mothers were further exempli-
ers, and only 3% of the mother-related topics made fied in mothers’ interactions with children. At-home
reference to employment issues. mothers were most frequently portrayed as neces-
The results also reveal the confinement of moth- sity providers, protectors, and playmates. The preva-
ers to the domestic sphere. At-home mothers in par- lence of the necessity provider role is consistent with
ticular were not associated with knowledge and influ- traditional beliefs that love and nurturance is con-
ence outside the home; indeed, they were not even veyed instrumentally through provision of food. The
seen outside the home. There are plenty of opportu- fulfillment of relational connection through food is
nities to portray mothers involved in social and polit- pervasive in the magazines: “For not insisting bunny
ical change in their communities, yet the magazines slippers are shoes. For leaving Blankie behind. For
focused on introspective, self-related content, to the actually getting out of the car. I’ll risk spoiling your
neglect of social and global issues. Walsh (1999) re- dinner. Welcome Home Chocolate Bars” (advertise-
ported that the content categories that receive the ment for condensed milk).
least attention in women’s magazines are economy, The focus on protection from the scary world
media, conflict, children, poverty, and the environ- is consistent with Lakoff’s “Strict Father Model”
ment. These topics should be of paramount concern in which patriarchal authoritative methods are em-
to mothers. ployed to teach children the self-discipline and moral
Although employed mothers were presented virtue they need to conquer the evils of the world
in integrated public–domestic sphere contexts, their (Lakoff, 1996). The focus on the protector role may
presence in the public sphere was presented in con- perpetuate the myth that at-home mothers are overly
junction with their pursuit of domestic success. In protective and enmeshed with their children.
other words, the employed mother must be repre- The playmate role has probably evolved from
sented as being an exemplary mother to justify her the neotraditionalist ideology that embraces much of
employment. These images give the impression that the traditionalist ideology but positions the children,
mothers cannot achieve real leadership roles in the rather than the father, as the raison d’être of the fam-
public sphere. Men can be very involved fathers, yet ily. The playmate role is also consistent with the myth
appear in media representations exclusively on the that at-home mothers are always accessible and in-
merits of their public sphere success, with no refer- tensely involved in the development of their children.
ence to their paternal roles. These depictions prevent Employed mothers were portrayed in nurturing
us from affirming women in leadership roles without roles more frequently than were at-home mothers.
assurances that they are also fulfilling their domestic Lakoff (1996) associated the “Nurturing Parent
duties. Model” with more politically liberal families. The
Nurturing Model focuses less on parental authority
and more on the development of children’s esteem,
Maternal Myths empathy, capacity for caring, and interpersonal and
social responsibility as a means to a fulfilling and
The emotional portrayals of at-home and em- happy life. The nurturing roles associated with em-
ployed mothers at first seem oddly paradoxical to the ployed mothers also serve to debunk the myth that
traditionalist bias of women’s magazines. The repre- employed mothers have difficulty bonding with their
sentations of at-home mothers as unhappy, not proud, children. The portrayal of employed mothers in neces-
and confused are not consistent with the myth of the sity provider roles counters the myth that employed
blissful at-home experience. Magazines imply that at- mothers neglect the needs of their children. More-
home mothers would be happier if they were more over, the portrayal of employed mothers as workers
competent mothers. This obviously fuels dependence interacting with their children depicts mothers mod-
on magazines for expert advice, but it also has po- eling employment and public sphere involvement for
tentially damaging effects on the psyches of at-home their children.
mothers. Employed mothers are portrayed more pos- Neotraditionalist constructions of motherhood
itively, as proud and happy. The myth that employed are apparent in the topical content associated with
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Invisible Mothers 31

mothers. The association of employed mothers with employment jeopardizes family relationships persists.
relational topics perpetuates the myth that em- Frequent but negative portrayals of at-home mothers
ployment jeopardizes family relationships and bol- and infrequent but positive portrayals of employed
sters the neotraditionalist “go home and save the mothers likely have the effect of undermining the con-
children” justification for quitting employment. Pre- fidence of both groups.
dominant targeting of at-home mothers with “how Let us first examine the case of employed moth-
to have fun” topics simplifies the lived experience ers. The magazines we analyzed are depicting em-
of at-home mothers and is consistent with the neo- ployed mothers in positive ways that debunk many of
traditionalist romanticizing of the return to the the negative myths associated with employed moth-
hearth. “Fun” topics sharply contrast with the neg- ers. Given the fact that the majority of mothers do
ative emotional portrayals of at-home mothers noted work outside the home, the lack of representation of
earlier. employed mothers in these magazines is curious in-
Increased interest in maternal feminism has deed. Employed mothers represent a viable market
given prominence to the contention that feminism has in numbers and income.
essentially ignored women’s roles as mothers (Fox- At-home mothers represent a minority in soci-
Genovese, 1996). This study contributes to schol- ety, but an overwhelming majority in the magazines
arship focusing on mothers and identifies one way analyzed. If magazines want to capitalize on the at-
in which detrimental cultural ideologies and myths home mother market niche, why perpetuate negative
of motherhood are perpetuated. Future research is myths of at-home mothers? Are magazines attempt-
needed to explore how mothers internalize or resist ing to identify with the stress of at-home mothering
the myths perpetuated in women’s magazines, and by portraying negative emotional states? Or, are mag-
how these myths affect the construction of their own azines seeking to undermine the confidence of at-
mother identity. How does the constructed “ideal” home mothers thereby making them more dependent
of White, unemployed mothers, solely fulfilled by do- on the information and expert advice offered in the
mestic sphere pursuits (in their homes, cars, and yards) magazines?
affect mothers’ perceptions of mothers, or themselves, Foucoult (1978) argued that hegemonic power
who might not be White, or who might be employed creates expectations that can be fulfilled by the
and have multiple roles and identities outside the dominant group and can ensure the failure of the
home, car, and yard? Do mothers who are not rep- subordinate group. Our data reveal that mothers’
resented in women’s magazines perceive themselves representations in the magazines may serve to under-
to be in the minority? mine the confidence of mothers, through either neg-
ative portrayals or an overall lack of representation.
The magazines depict at-home mothers confined to
CONCLUSION the domestic sphere and portray all mothers with lim-
ited public–sphere involvement. One interpretation
Glenn (1994) noted that one of the powers of these findings is that this effectively limits moth-
of ideologies is their ability to embrace contradic- ers’ ability to engage the public sphere where social
tory “myths”: “Mothers are romanticized as life- change occurs. A dominant traditional motherhood
giving, self-sacrificing, and forgiving, and demonized ideology is thereby preserved.
as smothering, overly involved, and destructive”
(p. 11). Contradictory expectations create double
binds (Bateson, 1972; Johnston & Swanson, in press). ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Double binds, in turn, generate feelings of guilt
and inadequacy (Bateson, 1972; Watzlawick, Beavin, The authors thank the editor and two anony-
& Jackson, 1967). The findings of this study show mous reviewers for helpful comments on an earlier
that although the women’s magazines we analyzed draft of this paper. The authors also thank Elizabeth
support a traditional motherhood ideology, negative Anderson, Ann-Marie Campion, and Katie Jen, un-
myths associated with traditional mothers are upheld. dergraduate students at Hope College, for their work
In contrast, nontraditional mothers were presented on data collection. This research was funded by grants
more positively; the negative myths about employed from the Hope College Frost Center for Social Science
mothers’ negative emotions and mother–child attach- Research and the Ruth M. Peale faculty development
ment issues are not upheld. However, the myth that fund.
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32 Johnston and Swanson

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