Understanding the Tensions of “Good Motherhood” Through Women’s Digital Technology Use: Descriptive Qualitative Study

Abstract

Background Research suggests that expectant and new mothers consult and value information gathered from digital technologies, such as pregnancy-specific mobile apps and social media platforms, to support their transition to parenting. Notably, this transitional context can be rich with profound physiological, psychological, and emotional fluctuation for women as they cope with the demands of new parenting and navigate the cultural expectations of “good motherhood.” Given the ways in which digital technologies can both support and hinder women’s perceptions of their parenting abilities, understanding expectant and new mothers’ experiences using digital technologies and the tensions that may arise from such use during the transition to parenting period warrants nuanced exploration. Objective This study aims to understand mothers’ use of digital technologies during the transition to parenting period. Methods A descriptive qualitative study was conducted in a predominantly urban region of Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Purposive and snowball sampling strategies were implemented to recruit participants who had become a parent within the previous 24 months. Researchers conducted focus groups using a semistructured interview guide with 26 women. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and thematically analyzed. Results Participants’ experiences of using digital technologies in the transition to parenting period were captured within the overarching theme “balancing the tensions of digital technology use in the transition to parenting” and 4 subthemes: self-comparison on social media, second-guessing parenting practices, communities of support, and trusting intuition over technology. Although digital technologies purportedly offered “in-the-moment” access to community support and health information, this came at a cost to mothers, as they described feelings of guilt, shame, and self-doubt that provoked them to question and hold in contention whether they were a good mother and using technology in a morally upright manner. Conclusions These findings raise critical questions concerning the promotion and commercialization of digital technologies and the ways in which they can further push the boundaries of hegemonic parenting practices, provoke feelings of inadequacy, and compromise well-being among expectant and new mothers.