Plea to mothers

[lgd2013]

Hi there, I've already posted this message on the forum a few weeks ago and had a lot of success so I was hoping to attract those who might not have participated the first time round.

My name is Leonie Duff, a Psychology Postgraduate at Royal Holloway

University. I am currently running a study which is looking at mothers

and their roles in the family and work place. I am deeply interested in

how mothers manage their roles and the consequent impact on their

self-perception and life satisfaction.

I was wondering if you would mind filling out this online questionnaire which should take 10 minutes and would be extremely helpful to me.

http://www.pc.rhul.ac.uk/sites/surveys/TakeSurvey.asp?SurveyID=9MM9m7KK8555G

I hope that you find this project worthwhile and would very much

appreciate your help. Also any thoughts on the topic or questionnaire itself would be very interesting to me.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Leonie Duff

[Lindsey<3]

Done :)

[lgd2013]

Thank you!

[echo]

I've done it.

I felt it was unclear but it is for sahm (in the survey the unemployed) aswell as paid employed mothers.

[Yak]

Very happy to contribute to this. I did feel that one question was extremely difficult to answer, and, because you couldn't pass on it and there was no space to comment on it, my thoughts are below.

"Below please indicate the ratio which best defines to what extent you see yourself as: A mother (percentage indicated on the left) : An employed/unemployed person(percentage indicated on the right"

I answered 50/50 but I don't see these things as opposites. I feel 100% me: that includes my roles as a mother and as a worker but disregards the other things I see myself as and the other roles I have (e.g as a wife, a musician, a daughter/sister etc etc). I don't see these as labels we can only attach to ourselves part of the time. Or did I misunderstand what you were looking for here?

The rest of the questions were very thought provoking and nuanced. I hope the research goes well.

[Anna M]

I agree with Yak - some of the ways in which the questions were phrased conflicted with how I see it - I am completely a mother and completely an employed person - I think of myself as both at the same time, rather than as separate parts. I actually answered 60/40 because of literal time analysis, but when I am at work I am still a mother! Anyway - interesting and I hope useful!

[sanity girl]

done

[Cora]

Done x

[sillywoman]

Done.

[KatDew]

I agree with the others posters. I don't believe feeling valued for my work and identifying myself with my profession is mutually exclusively with identifying myself as a mothers. The rest was fairly easily fillend in though

[Saila]

found this survey quite therapeutic, made me think that the choices I've made are actually right for me and I need to realise that and be grateful!

[civilservant]

done

(pleased to see a well-designed experiment and questionnaire for a change!)

[sugarmouse]

I've just done your questionnaire - very interesting and made me think. I particularly liked putting a percentage on how much I feel like a mum versus an employed person. I agree you can feel wholly both but being a mum takes up about 70% of my emotional and physical energy versus 30% taken up by work.

[JessM]

Underneath it all, I always feel like a mum while I'm at work, but I hardly even think about work when I'm "mumming."

Perhaps that just means I'm a bad employee!!!

[nunheadmum]

I'd say my thinking is 50% of the time both ways, work and mummy. But both impinge on the other by about 20% each way. So that explains why 40% of the time I feel conflicted and that I'm not as good as I could be! Kind of useful to recognise that.

[lgd2013]

I've just seen your responses, thank you so much for taking the time to both fill in the questionnaire and leave your thoughts on this forum. It's really helpful to have your comments and I will definitely address them in the discussion part of my project. This has certainly opened my eyes to motherhood, thank you for all your contributions!