The brittle attraction: Women deprived of the custody of children

Abstract

Based on interviews with 12 mothers, this article examines the meanings of mothering among mothers deprived of their children by a child welfare department.
Findings: Mothers construct their mothering on the basis of cultural notions. They perceive themselves as mothers. The deprival gives them a sense of inadequacy and reduces their value as women. The mothering is confirmed in their relationship to their children, where the gap be- tween ideal and reality leads to ritual modus operandi when they are with them. Four kinds of 'mothering’ are presented: network mothering, struggle for the child, symbolic mothering and the impossible solution: choose to be childfree.