Explain how the motherhood mandate influences women’s decisions to become mothers. Specifically, how are child-free women typically treated in U.S. society and does this have an impact on women? How might this impact women who experience infertility?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The motherhood mandate refers to the immense pressure society places on women to become mothers. Women are typically socialized in a way that prepares them for caregiving in motherhood. Young adult women are bombarded with questions about when they plan to have kids and if they will stay home once pregnant, along with countless other intrusive questions by both family and strangers. The motherhood mandate is so pervasive in our culture that many women feel it is expected of them to have children and have never considered never becoming a mother. Evidence indicates that women who are voluntarily childless are highly stigmatized. They are perceived as less warm and less psychologically fulfilled than women with children. Women who are involuntarily childless due to infertility may experience even more feelings of shame, as they may feel like a failure for not being able to produce children. They may experience even more depression and anxiety due to being unable to have children in the way that they had expected and wanted. All of this information highlights society’s pressure for women to have children and to reinforce the idea that motherhood is central to the female gender role.