Ambivalent Meanings of "Being a Mother" : Identity Formations of Japanese "Sengyo-Shufu" Women (Full-Time Housewives) in Their Child-Rearing Practices

概要

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Contemporary Japanese "Sengyo-shufu" (full-time housewives) are women who have chosen to follow the prevailing lifestyles of women in Japanese society, which in the contemporary social context still holds that women should stay home to become "mothers" with no job except child-rearing. In considering their situation, several key questions arise: (1) Have Japanese mothers' child-rearing styles changed? (2) If so, why do a majority of contemporary Japanese women still adhere to the prevailing way of life? What kinds of thoughts and emotions do these women have while keeping themselves at home in order to raise children? and (3) What meaning do these women attach to their being mothers? The data used in this paper came from interviews and questionnaires responses collected from 60 mothers of 2-and 3-year-old children who attended "Hahaoya-gakkyu" (parenting class for mothers) in 1991 and 1993. It is clear that identity formation of sengyo-shufu are faced with double-standards and are often caught between prevailing ideas and new ideas.
神戸親和女子大学の論文