Date of Graduation
Fall 2016
Degree
Master of Science in Early Childhood and Family Development
Department
Early Childhood and Family Development
Committee Chair
David R. Goodwin
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to understand what having a child means for mothers who experienced child abuse, how their children affected the motherhood positively, and how the mothers tried to overcome their child abuse experiences. Three mothers were found as participants for the study. The data were collected by qualitative, open-ended interviews. Each of the mothers had one interview that lasted around 1-1.5 hours. The mothers' lived-experiences are portrayed with analysis and in-depth interpretation. The study shows how child abuse experiences impacted the participants' lives and parenting, how the participants made progress in their experiences growing up, and how raising their children had a positive effect on their lives. All the mothers faced and analyzed their present parenting. This research develops a fuller understanding of the brightness of their motherhood. These results will help and inspire other professionals, such as social workers, to understand people who have had similar experiences.
Keywords
child abuse, emotional child abuse, overcoming from child abuse, phenomenology method, essentialist portraiture, narrative method, life stories of the motherhood
Subject Categories
Child Psychology
Copyright
© Maki Shigematsu
Recommended Citation
Shigematsu, Maki, "A Qualitative Study On The Meaning Of Having A Child For Mothers Who Were Abused In Their Childhood" (2016). MSU Graduate Theses. 3045.
https://bearworks.missouristate.edu/theses/3045
