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Journal of Contemporary Ethnography
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"But I Am a Good Mom"

The Social Construction of Motherhood through Health-Care Conversations

REBECCA W. TARDY

University of Louisville

Examining the impact of health information seeking among informal, interpersonal networks, this article focuses specifically on the extent to which these conversations serve to identify role boundaries, specifically that of motherhood. Drawing on Goffman's work on region and regional behaviors, this ethnographic analysis of women in a moms and tots play group reveals boundaries between the public and private presentation of self. The regions of front stage, backstage, and "back"-backstage are used here to discuss how talk regarding health issues, and particularly inappropriate or taboo talk, defines and exemplifies the role of the "good" mother. The implications for the accessibility of information are discussed in light of the cultural contradictions women face in fulfilling this role.

Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, Vol. 29, No. 4, 433-473 (2000)
DOI: 10.1177/089124100129023963
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