Introduction

Research on the parent–child relationship largely focuses on the impact of the relationship on the child’s development. Less scientific attention has been devoted to the impact of parenthood to parents’ self-development and mental well-being (Gutman, 2005). Although the number of studies exploring the unfolding experiences of parenthood has increased over the past years, most of these studies involved healthy rather than disabled adults (Lawler et al., 2015).

Research on special populations predominantly focuses on single parents, parenthood in ethnic minorities, and teenage mothers. The available findings on disabled adults’ parenthood are very limited, possibly due to the lack of adequate demographic data and the high heterogeneity within populations living with various disabilities (e.g., functional and social differences, severity of impairment, age of onset; Meadow-Orlans, 2002). Most studies conducted with disabled parents do not take account of the specific types of the participants’ (physical and sensory) disabilities, while this heterogeneity potentially involves diverse challenges of instrumental and functional adaptation to parenthood (Meadow-Orlans, 2002). The existing empirical research on disabled people’s childbearing decisions and parenthood experiences mostly evolve from the intersection of disability studies and feminist approach. The present study however applies disability studies and narrative identity approach as a theoretical basis, because we assume that narrative psychological approach provides a new insight into how women give meaning to their motherhood experiences.

The available studies of disabled women’s motherhood adopt one of two different perspectives on their subject. One approach focuses on individual women’s subjective experiences and addresses childbearing decisions in the context of self-fulfilment determined by womanhood, sexuality and motherhood. The other approach places disabled women’s childbearing decisions in a societal perspective focused on human rights (Kálmán, 2010). The present study explores the characteristics of visually impaired mothers’ personal identities as reflected in their individual representations of motherhood, while also taking account of the impact of the specific social context on these representations.

Influencing Factors for Fertility Behavior

There are a number of individual and social factors that potentially influence women’s childbearing behavior. Most demographic studies are based on a model of “women committed to childbearing”, which considers childbearing women as a homogeneous group (Hakim, 2003, as cited in Spéder & Kapitány, 2007). Importantly, however, changing social settings and economic trends have given rise to alternative personal objectives competing with childbearing intentions (Spéder & Kapitány, 2014). In Hungary, similarly to Western European countries, the educational expansion considered to be the major factor in declining fertility. Influence of employment and/or enrolment of women in childbearing age is not negligible, which means taking part in education and/or choosing motherhood have a major driving force in fertility behavior (Spéder & Bartus, 2017). Over the past years, family policy has become an important government priority due to the historically low birth-rate. The Hungarian family benefit regime had some favourable changes regarding baby-care allowance (CSED), childcare allowance (GYES) and childcare benefit (GYED) such as students in higher education are eligible for a fixed-sum GYED (the “graduate” GYED) or for twins GYED can be paid for three rather than two years (Makay, 2015). The Hungarian parental leave regime offers 36 months of financial support after having a child, which works as an income compensation that is calculated based on previous employment history (e.g. status, amount of income).

According to the Hungarian Central Statistical Office the average age for birth of the first child in Hungary was 27,7 years of age in 2012 (Spéder & Kapitány, 2007) irrespectively of the women’s health or impairment status. Household chores traditionally belong to women. A current demographic study (Cohort’18) shows that there is a definite shift in the distribution of household related tasks towards the women already during pregnancy, where they are responsible for chores such as cooking, washing dishes, shopping or cleaning (Kohorsz18.hu, n.d.) However, the role of men has also increased in recent years in domestic work (Cseh Papp, 2011).

Visually—or otherwise—impaired women are not provided by state-aided assistance network or specific services during the pre- and postnatal period with the exception of a few educational and training programs. The State Institute of the Blind published an educational issue for visually abled and disabled people about infant care as a blind. This publication contains practical suggestions for visually impaired parents in connection with diapering, (breast-)feeding, bathing, dressing up, drug dosing etc. (Tolnayné et al., 2015). Previously this Institute also launched infant-care trainings for visually impaired parents. The Equal Opportunities of Persons with Disabilities Non-profit Ltd. (FSZK) provides a wide variety of training programs for professionals. For instance, “Preparing health professionals for the care of visually impaired parents” is a 16-h-long special training. The Mentoring Parent Network was set up to help if the child was born with any eye problem, or may be at risk of total vision loss. (Vakok és Gyengénlátók Közép-Magyarországi Regionális Egyesülete /[Central-Hungarian Regional Association of the Blind and Paritally Sighted], n.d.)

The Association of Rehabilitation Specialists for the Visually Impaired has the initiative of Blind Parents’ Forum, which is similar to UK’s Blind Mums Connect civil organisation. The Forum has a Facebook group which was created by a mother with visual impairment, and it serves as a fellow community for parents with visual impairment, where they can share their ideas, suggestions and ask for help in connection with childcare and parenting (Látássérült Személyek Rehabilitációját Szolgáló Egyesület /[Association for the Rehabilitation of the Visually Impaired], n.d.).

Influencing Factors for Disabled Women’s Childbearing Behavior

Disabled mothers need to consider several factors before making a decision on childbearing. Disabled women’s emerging sense of motherhood is potentially burdened by wide-spread aversive attitudes in society (e.g., prejudice, stigmatization, questioning their parental abilities; e.g., Kirshbaum & Olkin, 2002; Llewellyn et al., 2003; as cited in Könczei, 2017; Prilleltensky, 2004). In order to realize their family plans, they need to be able to regard themselves as women rather than disabled women. This requires them to dissociate themselves from the stigmatization they are exposed to. One of the most common stereotypical beliefs about disabled women is that they lack the attributes traditionally associated with femininity, that is, their bodies are asexual and incapable of childbearing (Garland-Thomson, 2002, as cited in Lendvai & Nguyen Luu Lan, 2019; Kent, 2002; Wendell, 1996; Wołowicz-Ruszkowska, 2016). It should be noted that stigmas influence experience in general, therefore visually non-disabled mothers’ sense of motherhood and maternal identity as well are affected by stigmas considering motherhood in a given society. (Page, 2015).

The conceptions of motherhood in disability studies are centered around three major themes, including a “social construct elevated to mythical heights”, an ideal suggesting perfection, and an aversive attitude in institutional health care (Kálmán, 2010). These themes reflect wide-spread views, which may have a formative impact on disabled women’s identities and self-efficacy as mothers. As Könczei (2017: 16) notes, “those women who, despite all prejudicial attitudes and personal and collective fears, choose to fulfill their need for a positive identity and become mothers incur the risk of being viewed by society as deviants”. Disabled women may internalize the commonly encountered negative attitudes towards them, which may thus seriously affect their self-esteem and identities (Conley-Jung & Olkin, 2001; Lendvai & Nguyen Luu Lan, 2019). Disabled mothers’ parental self-efficacy is essentially influenced by the image reflected by their environment. There are two general views of disabled mothers in society, one of which is “idealized motherhood” glorifying these mothers, while the other is “mother-blame” based on prejudicial beliefs about children’s exposure to risk (Malacrida, 2009).

Disabled mothers have intersectional identities composed of memberships in several high-risk groups in terms of stigmatization. They simultaneously are people living with a disability, women, and mothers (Palombi, 2012, as cited in Lendvai & Nguyen Luu Lan, 2019). Multiple stigmatized or vulnerable identities compel disabled women to develop special coping strategies in order to achieve visibility and recognition in society as mothers (Lendvai & Nguyen Luu Lan 2019). Paradoxically, one strategy employed to enhance visibility involves “escape from the rejected body”, that is, concealment of the disability (Hernádi & Könczei, 2013; Wendell, 1996). This strategy is aimed at compliance with the prevailing social norms, that is, apparent normality (Hernádi, 2014; Wendell, 1996).

LaPierre et al. (2017) make a distinction between three interrelated groups of factors that influence disabled women’s childbearing decisions. The biomedical factors considered by prospective mothers include heritability, disability-related functional limitations (e.g., reduced mobility and physical fitness), current health status, and pregnancy-specific risks that mother and child are exposed to. Personal factors include the desire for expecting a baby and becoming a mother, financial circumstances, and the available alternatives to natural pregnancy (e.g., surrogacy, adoption, IVF). Social factors are the prevailing sociocultural norms and values, the quality of social interactions and support, the partner’s and family members’ attitudes, and the available role models. As Kálmán and Könczei (2002) point out, disabled individuals are often overprotected by their parents during childhood, which may have a permanent impact on their adult life, hindering them from developing the autonomy required for romantic commitment and adequate parenting.

Lappeteläinen et al. (2017) employed Greimas’ actantial model (Greimas, 1990) in an analysis of disabled women’s personal narrative accounts of motherhood, which focused on significant others’ functions in the participants’ fertility decisions. The authors revealed three distinct actantial structures associated with different motivations for, and experiences of childbearing and motherhood. Some of the participants considered childbearing as a form of “compensation”, which helped them make sense of their lives. Childbearing was thematized as a turning point that enabled them to feel themselves integral members of society. The protagonist of this type of narratives was the woman “searching for a purpose in life”. Another group of participants viewed childbearing as a “forbidden option”. These women’s narratives revealed that their desire for having a child had been suppressed since their childhood, and the suppressive agent was the immediate family in most cases. Their families did not expect them to make family plans, and some of them were even threatened with severe punishment (e.g., disinheritance) in case they would choose to have a child. In this type of narratives, the protagonist was depicted as a “victim of circumstances”. These participants often experienced ambivalence during pregnancy, oscillating between their desire for childbearing and a disapproving environment. The third group of participants, most of whom lived with a hereditary disability, narrated childbearing as a “planned choice”. Their desire for having a child arose as a natural development in their lives, while family planning took longer due to their physical disability. Although some of these participants also experienced uncertainty and ambivalence, they expressed a more pronounced sense of agency and control in the context of reproductive decisions. While each group of participants made sense of motherhood in a unique way, all of them associated their reproductive decisions with the experience of self-fulfillment and personal integrity.

Becoming a Mother

There are numerous theoretical approaches to motherhood. In the broadest terms, motherhood is a socially prescribed state with biological, psychological, social, environmental and political aspects, which has a potential for development and change, and for facilitating equilibrium or disequilibrium in women’s lives (Burley 2003; Chodorow 1978; as cited in Lawler et al., 2015). Women’s desire for childbearing is traditionally attributed to their maternal instinct, thus motherhood is an inherent aspect of womanhood (Lappeteläinen et al., 2017). As Choi et al. (2005) states “the ideal mother in western culture is positioned as a woman who mothers naturally, who is always and immediately present to care for her baby, and who does this mothering selflessly and seamlessly” (Choi et al., 2005; as cited in Malacrida, 2009: 99–100).

In psychodynamic terms, the state of motherhood brings a new psychological force into women’s lives, which creates a new constellation of perception, desires, fantasies and action tendencies (Stern & Tamás, 2004). Stern and Tamás (2004) suggests that the process of becoming a mother brings four major themes into the focus of prospective mothers’ thoughts, memories, fears and desires, which have an impact on their emotionality, adaptive behavior, actions and interpersonal relations. First, Life Growth includes thoughts and fears concerning the maternal competencies required for sustaining and fostering the child’s development. Second, Primary Relatedness concerns fears related to the ability to be attuned to the child in terms of emotions, communication and needs. Third, mothers need a Supporting Matrix of social relationships, which help them fulfill the above functions, that is, sustaining the child’s growth and providing them with a sense of security. Fourth and finally, Identity Reorganization is a psychological need of mothers associated with becoming a mother from a woman and a parent from a wife.

The process of motherhood identity formation may be divided into potentially overlapping stages (Mercer, 2004). The first stage is commitment, attachment, and preparation (spanning the period of pregnancy); the second stage is exploration, learning, and physical recovery (the first 2 to 6 weeks after childbirth); the third stage is progress towards motherhood as a natural mode of existence (2 weeks to 4 months after childbirth); the fourth stage is motherhood identity achievement (about 4 months after childbirth). As a result of the identity formation process, mothers develop a consolidated image of their child. Maternal identity formation may be facilitated by several factors such as interactions with the child, external expectations and duties associated with the mother role, reinforcements of motherhood by the responses of the child or the social environment, and affectionate feelings and protective care for the child (Mercer, 2004).

There are several additional factors potentially influencing the process of becoming a mother. These factors include prospective mothers’ personal circumstances, cultural beliefs, attitudes, socioeconomic status, preparedness, knowledge, and the given social conditions (Meleis et al., 2000; as cited in Mercer, 2004). Further influencing factors are the mother’s birth experience, an early mother-infant separation, the infant’s characteristics (temperament, responsiveness, appearance), the level of social stress, the available social support, the mother’s self-concept and personality (temperament, empathy, resilience), her relationship with her own mother, and her self-esteem and sense of control (Mercer, 2004). Considering the diversity and interrelatedness of the above factors, Mercer (2004) proposes the term becoming a mother in replacement for maternal role attainment, suggesting that the former term better reflects the dynamic nature of the process.

Becoming a Mother as a Disabled Woman

One possible theoretical approach to the process of becoming a mother as a disabled woman is offered by symbolic interactionism. This sociological theory describes changes in individual behavior as a result of dynamic interactions between the individual and the social environment (Charon, 2010). The stereotypes, prejudicial attitudes and stigmatization commonly associated with disability may have an essential impact on disabled people’s everyday life and activities, potentially “spoiling” their personal identities (Goffman, 1986; Lappeteläinen et al., 2018). This effect of stigmatization clearly manifests itself in disabled women’s focus on their physical and psychosocial limitations in their self-descriptions and self-evaluations. The stigmas associated with physical limitations are based on a medical approach, in which disability is either viewed as a health condition to be treated or as a hereditary impairment potentially damaging the unborn child and hindering the prospective mother from adequate caregiving. Similar diversity characterizes the stigmas associated with psychosocial limitations. For example, disabled women are more frequently believed to sustain unplanned pregnancies than their non-disabled counterparts. Disabled women more often experience that healthcare professionals either deprive them of adequate medical care and consideration or exercise excessive caution and control. As a consequence, these women often become highly sensitive to, and often blame themselves for their negative experiences (Morrison et al., 2014; Redshaw et al., 2013; Malacrida, 2009). Stigmatization may shape disabled mothers’ identities to such an extent that it becomes the very basis of motherhood. “They conceptualize their parental experiences along stigmas, which fulfills a compensatory function (also referred as “compensatory motherhood” (Malacrida, 2009). This is reflected in disabled mothers’ counter-narratives of motherhood, which are developed in response to the tension and confusion associated with the inconsistency between their personal experiences and the attitudes of the social environment. In these counter-narratives they try to hide their disability in order to prove their capability in parenting and be accepted as a mother by society (Lappeteläinen et al., 2018).

The social construct of an ideal mother imposes unattainable standards on women, which condemn them to fail as mothers (Malacrida, 2009). Disabled women are aware of these idealistic standards as well as of the disqualified status they are compelled by society to submit to as prospective mothers (Lappeteläinen et al., 2017; Malacrida, 2009). Their motherhood experiences reflect the tension accompanying their struggle to be ideal mothers, which is fueled by the many everyday challenges hindering them from meeting the prevailing standards of the representation of ideal motherhood (Malacrida, 2009). For example, mothers with reduced mobility are challenged by their child’s need for immediate and complete caregiving, while those with intellectual disabilities or acquired cognitive impairment may have difficulty reading their child’s mind. In sum, disabled women’s motherhood experiences are essentially influenced by the special challenges of parenting, by their struggle for autonomy as parents, and by the negotiation and management of personal control often undermined by the immediate and wider environment.

Lawler et al. (2015) explored the process of becoming a mother in a sample of disabled women, and the findings revealed three distinct stages. The first stage is the development of a sense of self during pregnancy, which emerges from interpersonal experiences. This stage is characterized by the quality of the feelings of security, protection, acceptance and belonging experienced with significant others, particularly including the prospective mother’s own mother. The second stage starting by the birth of the baby is the process of making meaning of the self as a mother. This stage is predominated by those coping strategies that enable the prospective mother to reorient, revise and reconstruct her self and to achieve personal growth, which motivates her to integrate motherhood into her self. An essential characteristic of this period is an immediate or gradual ontological shift towards motherhood. The slower graduality observed in some of the involved disabled mothers is attributed by the authors to health care professionals’ negative attitudes experienced by the mothers during the postnatal period. The third and final stage is the process of reforming the self as a mother. At this stage, the mother reconstruct and reorganize her self, which process is associated with complex physical, cognitive, behavioral and emotional changes. These changes encompass the mother’s social interactions, interpersonal relations, physical appearance and prioritized personal objectives. While this period is characterized, on one hand, by a sense of resignation associated with giving up the struggle to comply with the prevailing standards, disabled mothers also develop a strong sense of pride, more stable self-esteem and stronger belonging on the other hand. Motherhood reinforces their female identity and provides them with a sense of maturity and confidence.

The process of becoming a mother among healthy and disabled women is a concurrent process with similar stages. However, there are also differences such as identity of disabled mothers’ are presumed to be more influenced by social effects, like stereotypes, prejudices, than their non-disabled counterparts’.

Being a “Good Mother” as a Disabled Woman

Infant care and parenting may provide self-fulfillment and self-worth for disabled as well as non-disabled women (Cureton, 2015). Disabled mothers, however, often develop an identity characterized by the fundamental contradiction between simultaneously being the same as, and different from other mothers, and the reconciliation of these conflicting experiences requires special effort (Farber, 2000). Being a “good mother” poses a much more complex challenge to disabled women as compared to their non-disabled counterparts (Kálmán, 2010). While disabled and non-disabled mothers equally strive to meet a culturally transmitted ideal of a loving and caring mother, they follow different behavioral strategies.

For example, visually impaired mothers prefer physically close nurturing, which help them ease their fears concerning the child’s safety (Moghadam et al., 2017). Mother–child interactions in close nurturing involve alternative modalities, primarily tactile communication (Moghadam et al., 2017). Verbal contact is also more frequently used by visually impaired mothers, which is often accompanied by increased vigilance. Furthermore, a unique modality visually impaired mothers rely on in mother–child interactions is “seeing with the mind’s eye”. Kendrick points out that the real challenge for visually impaired mothers is not the impairment itself or motherhood but others’ approach to them, that is, the invisible barriers isolating them from other mothers and their children from other children (Kendrick, 1983; as cited in Conley-Jung & Olkin, 2001). At the same time, motherhood also connects them with other mothers (Meadow-Orlans, 2002).

Similarly to non-disabled women, childbearing enables many disabled women to experience self-fulfillment as women, partners, and mothers. Empirical findings suggest that there are numerous factors in disabled mothers’ everyday life that potentially reinforce their vulnerable sense of competence, such as the positive feedback received from the spouse, the feeling of completeness by becoming a parent, and the intimacy experienced by close physical closeness with the child (e.g. breastfeeding). The support received from family members and friends may also contribute to disabled mothers’ sense of competence (Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012). In this way, motherhood may strengthen disabled women’s self-confidence and self-efficacy.

Several studies point out that disabled parents’ children develop positive traits as a result of their unique experiences, which also reinforce their parents’ self-efficacy. Such positive traits are increased patience, flexibility, resilience, autonomy, and increased awareness of the social environment. Furthermore, these children show accelerated development of responsibility, problem-solving skills and independence, and display increased interest in people’s cultural and physical diversity (Cureton, 2015). Contrary to common prejudicial beliefs, they develop at a normal or even accelerated pace in all areas, and their increased problem awareness, sense of purpose and responsibility should by no means generally considered as symptoms of parentification (Kálmán & Könczei, 2002).

In research considering VI women motherhood, disability studies investigate disability in a social and cultural context, and emphasise less the medical or psychological framework (Rice, 2018). Narrative psychological approach however provides a way to understand the process of personal identification with being “disabled”. It aims to analyse how people construct this socially created phenomena, and set it into their identity, self-concept (Valeras, 2010). Impairment is an identity-forming temporary, stable property of the person, which essentially determines the way subjects think about themselves and position themselves in social groups (e.g. Dale, 2010; Lappeteläinen et al., 2018).

Individuals gain their personal identity from the groups that play a decisive role in their lives (Turner & Reynolds, 2010). Therefore, group relevant characteristics determine personal narrative identity. Group characteristics of personal identity can be best captured in interviews and focus groups (e.g. Adler et al., 2012; McLean, 2008), in which the first-person accounts are assumed to represent group-relevant features as well. This allows us to compare two groups by the means of their members’ personal narrative accounts in our study.

Research Aim

The present study compared visually impaired and normally sighted women’s motherhood experiences in an approach combining the theoretical perspectives of narrative psychology and disability studies. A basic tenet of narrative psychology as a metapsychological paradigm is that narratives serve as a means of making sense of human experience (László, 1999). In line with this perspective, the present study was primarily aimed at revealing how visually impaired mothers’ narrative accounts of motherhood reflected the impact of the attitudes of their social environment on their identities. The present paper is intended to make a distinction between normally sighted and visually impaired mothers as two different social groups. However, we assumed that the two groups’ narratives of motherhood experiences might have common aspects as well due to the shared psychological experience of motherhood and shared social-cultural reality. Normally sighted mothers were involved in the study primarily as a point of reference in order to establish whether and to what extent motherhood-related cultural beliefs had a unique, non-shared impact on visually impaired mothers’ identities. Furthermore, a secondary aim of the study was to explore the conceptions of motherhood among normally sighted and visually impaired mothers living in Hungary.

Sample

The sample included 20 visually impaired (VI) mothers and 21 normally sighted (NS) mothers, all of whom lived in Hungary at the time of data collection. The size of each subsample was based on the optimal level of saturation, that is, the maximum number of interviews above which further interviews would not provide new information on the sample (Willig, 2013). Our study can be considered as a small group-matched comparison study (Granqvist et al., 2014).

The two subsamples were matched by the key demographic variables (level of education, place of residence, marital status, number of children, mother’s and child’s age), on which the sample showed heterogeneity. Beside this, in the VI group one of the partners had an additional hearing loss and two partners have moderate visual impairment. Four VI mothers had a health condition in addition to visual impairment (hydrocephalus, dwarfism, Crouzon syndrome). One NS mother had postpartum mental health issues. The major demographic data are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1 Demographic data of the sample
Full size table

As women shared the same experience (visually impaired and having children vs. visually non-impaired and having children), these experiences made them homogeneous within groups. On the other hand, the heterogeneity of the VI group was expected considering the low prevalence and limited accessibility of this population. The heterogeneity of demographic characteristics within groups however is able to uncover deeper insight into the topic of our research, especially when the target population is relatively narrow (Grønkjær et al., 2011).

Method

In line with the narrative psychological approach to motherhood, each participant gave a narrative account of her related experiences in a semi-structured interview. The transcribed responses were subjected to a thematic analysis aimed at comparing the VI and NS mothers’ narratives for thematic composition including the major themes and subthemes. Adapting to qualitative methodological paradigms, we have prioritized disciplined subjectivity as a kind of pursuit of objectivity. Internal reliability was created by recording the reconciliations between the coders, and external reliability by identifying and taking into account the researcher's position, developing the theoretical background, and compiling the sample and methodology with a critical eye. The credibility and validity of our research is ensured by the reflection of the interviewees on the results, the continuous control of subjectivity, the technique of triangulation (data collected from different locations, varying at different times, heterogeneous groups along demographic characteristics) and the involvement of a VI undergraduate student in the analysis phase (Hill & Knox, 2021). The employed methodology and procedure are discussed in detail below.

Semi-structured Interviews

Participants were recruited via online platforms (visually impaired participants were invited on the platforms of the Hungarian Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted and its regional associations), normally sighted participants were recruited via social media. After contacting our first participants, we applied the snowball method. Each interview was conducted by the first author in a one-on-one setting, either personally (external scene, e.g. library) or via phone. Interviews were conducted between December 2018 and June 2020. The semi-structured interview technique ensured both the adequate focus and flexibility of data collection. Each interview was recorded on a voice recorder after receiving informed consent to the procedure from each participant. The duration of the interviews ranged from 0.38 to 2.17 h (M = 1.10, SD = 0.32) in the VI subsample and from 0.25 to 1.18 h (M = 0.32, SD = 0.15) in the NS subsample. The responses were transcribed either manually or with the artificial-intelligence-based online speech recognition application Alrite, which automatically transcribes Hungarian speech with reliable accuracy (Régens, n.d.). All relevant provisions of the Declaration of Helsinki and the General Data Protection Regulation concerning the ethical treatment of participants and their data were fully taken into consideration. The research plan was approved by the Hungarian United Ethical Review Committee for Research in Psychology (under License No. 2019–34).

In order to develop the necessary rapport and attunement to the interview situation, each participant was first asked to briefly introduce herself. Furthermore, each VI participant was asked to describe her impairment including its origin, severity and current status. In the main part of the interview there were questions referring to motherhood experiences (childbearing and birth/delivery, subjective meaning of motherhood), mother-infant relationship (clinically relevant experiences: care, play), emotionally significant interpersonal stories (child’s sadness, happiness). Questions were primarily referred to the youngest child, but it was difficult to direct the mother’s attention specifically to one child, in most cases they presented their children in relation to each other. The subsequent interview questions were in part based on Daniel Stern’s Clinical Window theory of mother-infant interactions (Stern & Tamás, 2004) and in part on the relevant literature on parenting (Ozvári-Lukács, 2013; Freud, 1981). Some of the interview questions concerned the participants’ experiences of harmony between them and their children (e.g., when playing together). The participants’ conceptions of motherhood were revealed by the following interview question: “What is the meaning of motherhood for you? What does the word recall to you?” The full list of interview questions is presented in Appendix A.

Thematic Analysis

The thematic analysis of the responses was focused on the most frequently thematized experiences, which formed the basis of an inductively developed coding scheme including the major themes and subthemes (Braun & Clarke, 2006; Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012). A total of seven independent coders participated in the analysis. The first part of the analysis involved one VI and three NS undergraduate psychology students, who extracted the most frequently recurring meaningful text units of the full transcripts in a group setting. The second part of the analysis was conducted by the first and second authors as follows. The extracted text units were manually coded by the first author, then the extracted text units and the manually attached codes were organized into structured categories with the ATLAS.ti v. 8 software designed for qualitative data analysis (Friese, 2019). ATLAS.ti was used to categorize manually created labels. The hierarchical synthesization of labels was computed based upon their frequency. The outcome of synthesization were major themes - most frequent themes - and subthemes. Overlaps between these categories were allowed, as some of issues, phenomena may cut across themes providing a unified framework for certain themes, subthemes. The categorization was independently performed by the first author and the second author. In cases of disagreement, the concerned categories were discussed and finalized after the two coders reached consensus.

Results

The thematic analysis revealed eight major themes in the responses, each of which is illustrated below with excerpts from the interviews. The quoted participants’ subsample memberships and numerical ID numbers are indicated in brackets after each excerpt. Table 2 presents the nine major themes and the relevant subthemes by subsample. Absolute frequencies of themes and subthemes can be found in Appendix B.

Table 2 Major themes and subthemes of the visually impaired and normally sighted mothers’ narrative accounts of motherhood experiences
Full size table

Emotions

Motherhood narratives are frequently includes a wide variety of emotions. The most frequently expressed emotional qualities in VI and NS mothers’ narratives were affection and happiness, respectively. Some of the participants in each subsample also emphasized difficulties, that is, their responses reflected ambivalence associated with the duality of self-denial and self-fulfilment:

“Still, motherhood is the most wonderful thing in the world. And it is the noblest duty as well. And it is also the hardest, if one wants to do it really well.” (VI 10, 29 years old, in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 8-month-old boy and a 2,5-year-old girl)

“Now, this will sound quite commonplace, but it really is the hardest thing in the world, I think, but it is also the most beautiful.” (NS 14, 32 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 6-month-old and a 7-year-old girl)

“So, [it is] this self-denial, most of all. Well, of course, there is plenty of joy in it.” (NS 17, 34 years old, married, mother of a 2-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy)

Another common experience revealed in both subsamples was the satisfaction in generativity. However, the NS mothers’ accounts generally reflected a wider emotional spectrum, which included more negative qualities (fatigue, uncertainty, worry) as compared to VI mothers’ emotionality.

“It is the greatest wonder in the world that one can create. Because it is [part] of me, it is [part] of my partner, whom I also love more than anyone in the world, [whom] I like, I live every day of mine with him, and it will be the one of the two of us, that little kid we create, whom we can shape as we want, with all our effort, [and] devotion.” (VI 10, 29 years old, in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 8-month-old boy and a 2,5-year-old girl)

“Well, [it is] constant availability; I can say that [it means] responsibility, sleepless nights, but, but mostly joy (NS 3, 34 years old, married, mother of a 1-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy)

Continuity

Continuity includes references to the continuity of generations by bringing forth children and experiences of evolving sense of motherhood. Both NS and VI mothers articulated an experience of continuity in relation to motherhood. While the former primarily experienced continuity in their emerging sense of motherhood, the latter placed their individual motherhood experiences in a broader context of generativity encompassing memories of their children’s development and participation in the continuity of human reproduction. A normally sighted mother referred to her sense of motherhood emerging only after finding out her pregnancy. This sense further developed during pregnancy and evolved fully after childbirth. She highlighted the process of change in her unfolding sense of motherhood from not wanting a child to having children is the best thing in the world.

“I am aware that this is very general, but I do not know how one can appropriately answer [this question]. So, generally, that is, that what is there in the people and in the animal kingdom, too, this succession... That is... What is that, help me. The reproduction process, that is, this is obviously there.” (VI 18, 50 years old, living in cohabiting relationship, mother of a 20-year-old man)

“This will sound weird, but I did not really want to be a mother before, that is, this change happened to me during pregnancy and after childbearing.” (NS 16, 33 years old, married, mother of a 1,5-year-old girl)

Personal Development

The theme personal development includes references to the experience of enrichment of women’s personality by new aspects associated with the maternal role after the birth of a child. The participants often approached to their motherhood experiences in terms of identity and personality development.

“So, I think that I am who I am with this [as part of me], that I have a kid. That is, it may even [be] part of the [my] personality, or the, my identity, definitely, well, obviously. That is, motherhood is kind of a role, which is important to be integrated into the identity, but I could not [even] imagine otherwise.” (VI 18, 50 years old, living in cohabiting relationship, mother of a 20-year-old man)

“So, I think this thing can absolutely be a positive personality development [laughing]. I can see myself, like ‘wow, I am like this.’” (NS 10, 33 years old, married, mother of a 15-month-old boy)

“I think it is a fantastic opportunity of development. I can not only see my child’s personality unfolding moment by moment, but I also learn a lot about the world, about humanity in general, and about myself, too.” (NS 8, 37 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 2,5-year-old girl)

The most frequently emphasized aspect of personal development was self-devotion (self-denial, self-sacrifice, or submission) in both subsamples:

“One could say that if one full, fully devotes oneself to motherhood, then nothing [else is there] night and day. One cannot sleep through the night because, because the child may wake up any time. I, I, I, I, absolute self-denial, that is what I say.” (VI 5, 34 years old, single, mother of 1-year-old twins)

“A lot, lot of energy invested, a lot of devotion, a lot of sacrifice.” (VI 10, 29 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 8-month-old boy and a 2,5-year-old girl)

“She is the first, she is always the first, whatever happens.” (VI 13, 39 years old, married, mother of a 9-year-old girl)

“And the child is always the first to me. And then me.” (NS 9, 28 years old, living in cohabiting relationship, mother of a 7-year-old boy, a 6-year-old and a 2-year-old girl)

“Well, [the] first, first word that I recall, it is devotion, [I mean] that from now on one fully lives for one’s child.” (NS 16, 33 years old, married, mother of a 1,5-month-old girl)

Self-fulfilment was another motherhood-related experience shared by the two subsamples, that is, the birth and presence of the child was viewed by both VI and normally sighted mothers as an integral part of a life lived to the full.

“And really, I mean, life is full like in this way, that I have, I have a child.” (VI 4, 36 years old, divorced, mother of a 6-year-old boy)

“Well, to me, [it means] fulfilment, so to say, because, to be honest, I always knew I wanted to be a mother.” (NS 4, 40 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 3,5-year-old boy and a 1,5-year-old girl)

“And [it means] happiness, and kind of a fulfilment, that they are like here, and this is cool.” (NS 3, 34 years old, married, mother of a 1-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy)

Both NS and VI mothers thematized motherhood as a new purpose in life, while some of the VI participants also associated motherhood with a sense of belonging.

“Besides, that is, I mean this, that is, I mean not in the negative sense of the word, but I mean, that, that one finds like a new purpose in life.” (NS 16, 33 years old, married, mother of a 1,5-year-old girl)

“And that a child is not tiresome, but, but [it is] really like... [it is] the why of a woman’s life.” (NS 6, 30 years old, married, mother of a 2-month-old a 5-year old and a 3-year-old boy)

“I can say that if the [my] girls had not been born, then my existence would not really have made any sense.” (VI 5, 34 years old, single, mother of 1-year-old twins)

“I think [it is] security, the sense that I belong somewhere.” (VI 11, 32 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 11-month-old boy)

Only NS mothers thematized motherhood as a positive aspect of their selves, some of whom explicitly expressed their positive attitudes towards, and positive views on themselves as mothers.

“So I am really happy, I love the [my] kid very much, I love to be a mother. (…) So I would say that I really like this, I couldn’t imagine myself any other way” (NS 1, 31 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old boy)

“It is a very good feeling. That is, I love to be a mother. I, I, I, I think it’s (…) to understand that my god, my child, I don’t know, imitates me and really that's me? So a kind of feedback about personality is like putting a mirror in front of me and I would do it myself to say… [laughing].” (NS 10, 33 years old, married, mother of a 15-month-old boy)

Connectedness

The theme connectedness includes references to the experience of emotional bonding mutuality and the importance of connection. The connection between mother and child was another major theme shared by both subsamples. While both NS and VI mothers thematized the special bond between them and their children, the latter recounted more elaborate experiences of connectedness in the context of motherhood, laying special emphasis on interdependence, attachment, and symbiotic relationship.

“I take her with me everywhere, at least I try. As much as possible, [we] need to be together whenever possible. She does not yet want to be separated, so I let her be not separated. We sleep together.” (VI 13, 39 years old, married, mother of a 9-year-old girl)

“Well, to be a mother, it is the most beautiful thing, and, well, that, that... To become one with the child, I mean.” (VI 1, 37 years old, married, mother of a 5-year-old girl)

“And the other [thing is] that, that [he belongs] to me, I mean I feel that he belongs to me, that he is mine. That, that, that is, the attachment part, I mean like my [feeling of a] close attachment, that someone was growing in me and came out at the end, and he is here with me, and I have never felt such a close attachment in my whole life.” (NS 10, 33 years old, married, mother of a 15-month-old boy)

One VI mother also emphasized the significance of mother’s and child’s mutual adaptation to each other’s needs, and the importance of the natural course and continuous learning of this process had a generally observable impact on motherhood experiences in the VI subsample.

Challenges

The theme challenges includes references to the experience of demanding aspects of the ‘life long journey’ of motherhood. Formulating challenges is as important as noticing successes in maternal role. The challenges of motherhood were thematized by both subsamples. VI mothers associated these challenges with the importance of planning and preparation for difficult situations.

“So, I would say to prospective mothers, [and] particularly to the visually impaired [mothers], that one has to heavily prepare.” (VI 5, 34 years old, single, mother of 1-year-old twins)

While VI mothers mostly worried about the here-and-now challenges of everyday life, NS mothers tended to show a future-oriented approach to challenges (e.g., managing the child’s formal education, unpredictable consequences of parenting practices).

“But one is also worrying that the child is like collectivized [humorous reference to the former socialist economic system in Hungary] at age six at the latest, that is, I mean, you know, that he goes to school, and you will not see him [laughing].” (NS 1, 31 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old boy)

“Well, and the harder part is parenting, when the child is older, and it is not only about playing together, and [not] like [using early] developmental toy[s], but like when one has to actually [act like a] parent, and then it is about... well, I mean [the uncertainty of] what I do and do not do good with [to the child]. And [it is] like one does not know [what to do], I mean this is just like pure luck. And like it is a hard thing. I mean a really hard thing.” (NS 19, 32 years old, married, mother of a 1-year old and a 6-year-old boy)

“I mean to me as a mother, [there is] nothing more painful than when my child is sick, or [when] she feels pain somewhere, nothing is worse.” (VI 10, 29 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 8-month-old boy and a 2,5-year-old girl)

“To me, those many sleepless nights were very hard. I mean that [period of time], to me, really. And this constant getting out of bed, and all that stuff. So I really really missed that [sleeping]. To me, it was very hard, the first half a year, to do this [all the time].” (VI 20, 38 years old, married, mother of a 6-year-old girl)

Partner

The theme partner includes references to the role of the intimate partner. Both VI and NS women thematized their partners’ role in family planning and parenting, emphasizing the importance of shared values and cooperation between the partners.

“But, but I practically try to... well, to give him, if not the circumstances like a sweet home, but a warm and loving atmosphere together with my partner, because I, of course, regard him as [an] equal [partner], because a father has an equally large share in this, I think. I mean that it is a must that both parents be there, because both the mother and the father are equally important. Both, both, both are, both are needed in the family. Unless, well, of course, if, say, one of them dies, that is a different case obviously, but, but if there is no difficulty like that, then, then I think it is absolutely necessary. So that both take part in parenting. I mean there are things that the father is unfamiliar with and things that the mother [is unfamiliar with], but I think they can teach one another. And I, I mean, I have chosen a very good partner, or he has chosen a very good partner, that [he has chosen] me, or I do not know how to say [laughing]. I, I am very lucky.” (VI 11, 32 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 11-month-old boy)

“Of course, it also takes a good partner [laughing]. If I had not had a partner like that, I would not have known when to let the papooses come. But he takes his full share in all phases of parenting. We have made a deal about specific functions [to be fulfilled by each of us].” (NS 6, 30 years old, married, mother of a 2-month-old a 5-year old and a 3-year-old boy)

“I always wanted to have a child but met my husband only later, or, I mean, I delivered around the average [age]. I think it is around like 27 or 28 [years of age]. And, I mean I wanted [to have a child] earlier, but I did not find the right guy.” (NS 1, 31 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old boy)

Roles and Principles

As Lappeteläinen and her colleagues emphasized motherhood can be considered as a dominant cultural narrative, as it consists of several normative ideas about how women should behave in maternal role (Lappeteläinen et al., 2018). Roles and principles are two overlapping categories, however we distinguished them in some sense. Roles refer to those maternal and child roles that a woman attributes herself or her child(ren) within the mother–child(ren) relationship (e.g., mother as a safe base; child as a teacher). The principles can rather be linked to activities, expectations, tasks referring only to parenting and motherhood (eg. care, teaching, learning).

Motherhood was very frequently defined by family roles. Some participants focused on the child’s role, while others relied on parental roles in making sense of motherhood. As compared to the NS mothers’ narratives, a more pronounced distinction between the child’s role and the maternal role was observable in the VI mothers’ accounts. Firstly, we review the themes associated to maternal role. In the visually impaired mothers’ accounts was primarily associated with fostering the child’s development and well-being by serving as a secure base. One VI mother equated motherhood with security itself, that is, she expressed that her maternal role provided her with a sense of security. Only VI and not NS mothers thematized experiences centered around security and closeness.

“But, but she [the mother] does not thrust herself on her child, I mean, I am the type of person who is there when needed, but no, otherwise I never wanted like now I am going to play with the child because I must [feel urged to] sit beside her and so on, but I was just doing my stuff, the children were playing around me, if she was alone, then [she played] alone.” (VI 7, 40 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old, an 8-year-old, a 11-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy)

The child’s role was much less frequently thematized by NS mothers; metaphors such as a mirror (i.e., a reflected self-aspect) and a teacher were used once each.

“I mean it is a kind of a feedback on [my] personality, like I put a mirror in front of me, and I myself did like this... [laughing]. So, I think this thing can absolutely be [kind of] a positive personality development [laughing]. I can see myself, like ‘wow, I am like this.’” (NS 10, 33 years old, married, mother of a 15-month-old boy)

VI mothers assigned importance to both themselves and their children in terms of family cohesion.

“After all, I mean you know, she has like... she has somewhat pulled the family together since she was born.” (VI 8, 30 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 17-month-old girl)

“And that actually this is also a cohesive role in the family, I mean like, I mean like a background role or something like that.” (VI 6, 36 years old, married, mother of a 4-year-old, an 8-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy)

NS mothers thematized the maternal role as a female privilege, which was in some cases associated with the importance of finding a balance between different female roles.

“Very hard, very tough, but I think every woman should experience at least once in their life that it really is the best thing in the world.” (NS 5, 27 years old, married, mother of a 2-year-old and a 3-year-old girl)

“Well, if I was to prioritize, I would say that the biggest duty and goal in my life is to do this right, and to do this in balance with everything, I mean like not to... I also have to somehow find [balance between] my being a mother and a wife.” (NS 15, 42 years old, married, mother of a 7-year-old and a 11-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl)

Both VI and NS mothers frequently thematized parenting principles and duties, particularly regarding caregiving and responsibility.

“I do not know, it is like providing\[caring] around the child. Responsibility, devotion.” (VI 15, married, 34 years old, mother of a 22-month-old and a 3,5-year-old boy)

“Life-long responsibility.” (NS 21, 29 years old, married, mother of a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old girl)

“Well, actually, to put it very plainly, it is also a duty, but it is, I mean it is like an absolutely natural thing, too.” (VI 14, 24 years old, married, mother of a 5-month-old boy)

Mutual and continuous learning and teaching between mother and child was also thematized by both subsamples. In this context, VI mothers’ thematized their experiences of mutual or successive adaptation to each other’s interactional needs. By contrast, NS mothers primarily thematized unidirectional teaching involving the parent as a teacher and the child as a learner, while mutuality was manifested in their novel learning experiences specifically related to their maternal role.

“Well, then we will learn together [laughing]. Now she is learning me [my needs] and I am learning her [needs], for better or worse.” (VI 21, 41 years old, married, mother of a 4-year-old boy)

“I mean that I can pass on what I have been given and I want to pass on, or what I have not been given but I want to pass on in the way I see it right.” (VI 11, 32 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 11-month-old boy)

“But, I mean I think that, that this also requires one to educate oneself, one has to learn, too.” (VI 6, 36 years old, married, mother of a 4-year-old, an 8-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy)

“I think it is a very big challenge, but it teaches one a great many things.” (NS 15, 42 years old, married, mother of a 7-year-old and a 11-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl)

“I think it is a fantastic opportunity of development. I can not only see my child’s personality unfolding moment by moment, but I also learn a lot about the world, about humanity in general, and about myself, too.” (NS 8, 37 years old, living in a cohabiting relationship, mother of a 2,5-year-old girl)

Availability to the child was thematized by both subsamples as a crucial aspect of motherhood. However, VI mothers tended to tie their availability to the child’s needs, while also emphasizing the importance of supporting the child’s autonomy by avoiding unnecessary interventions. As compared to the NS mothers’ narratives, this dynamics of approach and avoidance was more pronounced in the VI mothers’ accounts, as reflected in the more frequent thematization of both the protection and autonomy of the child, which difference was also observable in other contexts (e.g., playing together, interactions, transport, holding/reassurance).

“If [I should express it] figuratively, then I feel something like a warm, warmth, a, a, [someone] who is always there when needed.” (VI 7, 40 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old, an 8-year-old, a 11-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy)

“And I am trying to make men out of them, I mean real men (...) And, well, I have to teach them that they have to work for everything, nothing comes for free.” (NS 9, 28 years old, living in cohabiting relationship, mother of a 7-year-old boy, a 6-year-old and a 2-year-old girl)

Calling/Career

The theme calling/carrier includes references to the experience of familial and non-familial tasks and duties related to motherhood. Interestingly, while NS mothers primarily thematized the importance of reconciliating motherhood with professional career, and occasionally a need for pursuing motherhood as a recognized primary occupation, VI mothers considered motherhood a calling or career as a matter of course. Motherhood-related experiences of struggle and effort were also sorted into this thematic category.

“Well, I think this is... I think it is a calling. I mean I think that, that this should be a proper occupation, quote unquote, business, I mean, job, just like, say, I mean, like anything else. I mean I think that if one is doing this with several kids, then it amounts to that [a career]. I mean I think that this is like a calling, or, quote unquote, career, which also involves like a great deal of work to do. Only it involves a different kind of work than, say, I mean a business, or a, I mean like a job.” (VI 6, 36 years old, married, mother of a 4-year-old, an 8-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy)

“It is definitely warmth and care, and struggling for the kids, taking care of them and stuff like that.” (VI 7, 40 years old, married, mother of a 3-year-old, an 8-year-old, a 11-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy)

“And, of course... er... it also takes a great deal of work, to be a mother, but it is worth.” (VI 4, 36 years old, divorced, mother of a 6-year-old boy)

“And I actually feel like that when I am asked, ‘are you looking forward to go back [to work]?’ I say, ‘no way, I feel not one little bit willing to go back to work.’ And I say, ‘why, I delivered them so that I can be with them.’ I say, ‘it is my earnest desire to hear about a government proposal letting mums stay home and even [be] paid for that to have something to live on. And, and not to have to work but raise children only.” (NS 6, 30 years old, married, mother of a 2-month-old a 5-year old and a 3-year-old boy)

“Well, I very very much like to be with my little girl, to be at home, so actually I absolutely do not plan to go back to work soon, because I like this very much, this situation.” (NS 20, 28 years old, married, mother of a 1-year-old girl)

Discussion

The motherhood experiences recalled by the participants in the interviews were sorted into eight thematic categories: (1) Emotions, (2) Continuity, (3) Personal Development, (4) Connectedness, (5) Challenges, (6) Partner, (7) Roles and Principles, (8) Calling/Career.

Both VI and NS mothers expressed several discrete emotional qualities associated with their motherhood experiences, while the latter’s narratives covered a wider spectrum including more frequent negative emotional states. This difference does not necessarily indicate that normally sighted mothers had more negative experiences as mothers. It is more likely that many VI mothers developed a counter-narrative of motherhood in response to the aversive attitudes and stigmatization they were potentially exposed to in society (Lappeteläinen et al., 2018). These negative social experiences might motivate them to engage in self-affirmation in the context of motherhood, as reflected in the particular emphasis on positive experiences.

Although continuity was not a frequently thematized aspect of motherhood in the narratives, two distinct perspectives were revealed in this context, which deserve particular attention in future research. While VI mothers focused on their children’s development and on the transgenerational continuity of life, NS mothers either did not thematize continuity at all or addressed it in the individually oriented context of self-fulfilment. Apart from this essential difference of perspectives, these experiences generally reflect the dynamic emergence of a sense of motherhood suggested by the term becoming a mother as opposed to the static view implied by the term maternal role attainment (Mercer, 2004). The difference between perspectives may be influenced by the age of the child, as the VI mother’s child was a 20-year-old young adult, till the NS mother’s child was only 1,5 years of age. Relevance of transgenerational continuity may have a more important role when a mother have elder child(ren).

With pregnancy, women’s gender identity undergo reorganization, and the emergence of a sense of motherhood may be divided into distinct stages in terms of identity formation (Stern & Tamás, 2004; Mercer, 2004). This reorganization process was thematized by the participants as finding a new purpose in life and developing a new role in the family as it appeared in the theme personal development. Both NS and VI mothers thematized motherhood as a new purpose in life, which was also associated with self-denial in both groups. In the perspective of existential psychology, the child as a purpose in life is an essential aspect of motherhood (Prinds et al., 2014). VI mothers also associated motherhood with a sense of belonging. Several previous studies on motherhood experiences revealed that the process of becoming a mother was accompanied by a sense of self-fulfilment, which in turn contributed to self-perceived parental competence (Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012; Lappeteläinen et al., 2017; Cureton, 2015). Many participants in the present study explicitly expressed the pleasure they took in motherhood. The maternal role enables VI women to experience self-fulfilment and engage in self-empowerment both as women and as mothers (Lappeteläinen et al., 2017). All of the mothers who thematized motherhood as a new purpose of life and mentioned self-fulfillment had in common in raising children up to 6 years of age, which may have an influence for this similarity. However, marital status has no connection to these subthemes. We think motherhood has an aspect of selflessness, a kind of perspective taking, which evolves after birth of a child and which influences personality development. Submission and sacrifice are not included in emotion category, as we considered this two from a (personal) developmental point of view. It neither classified in “Challenges” category as we distinguished two types of challenges (planning of difficult situations and future-oriented challenges). In line with the findings reported by Lawler et al. (2015), the VI participants in the present study associated motherhood with feelings of pride and positive changes in their self-esteem and sense of belonging. Self-advocacy is a major building block of empowerment, in this sense it means that visually impaired mothers could speak and make decisions on behalf of their own, rather than with the help of a deputy or mediator person (Könczei, 2017). These findings corroborate that motherhood experiences may positively reinforce disabled women’s gender identity and self-confidence (Lawler et al., 2015; Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012).

Attachment, close connection with the child and the intimacy of this special bond was also found to be an essential aspect of motherhood. This is in line with Stern’s theory of motherhood, which points out the importance of primary relatedness in motherhood experiences, that is, attunement to the child’s emotional and physical state, and adequate perception of, and responses to the child’s needs in dyadic interactions (Stern & Tamás, 2004). The importance of primary connectedness in disabled women’s motherhood experiences was revealed in several studies (Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012). VI mothers often reinforce this emotional and physical bond by close nurturing, that is, by keeping close physical contact with the child, which increases the mother’s sense of control in terms of caregiving (Moghadam et al., 2017). In disabled parents’ relationship with their children, the need for mutual adaptation may contribute a special quality to connectedness. In the present study, this special quality was reflected in a special sense of interdependence emphasized by the VI participants.

While the challenges of motherhood were thematized by both subsamples, VI mothers generally gave more elaborate accounts of challenging everyday life situations. As revealed by the findings reported by Lappeteläinen et al. (2017), disabled women childbearing decisions may require a time- and effort-demanding planning process. This need for special efforts was well reflected in VI mothers’ accounts as compared to NS mothers’ narratives. While the former focused on challenges posed by day-to-day situations and by problems demanding an immediate solution (e.g., managing transport with the child), the latter were concerned with their children’s future (e.g., managing the child’s formal education, unpredictable consequences of parenting practices). Use of social assistance by VI women may have an impact on mentioning day-to-day challenges. Among VI mothers, only VI 5, mother of 1-year-old twins used support and help of a social worker in childcare.

Living in a stable and supportive partner relationship is an essential factor in family planning (Engler, 2014). Both VI and NS women thematized their partners’ role in family planning and parenting, emphasizing the importance of shared values and cooperation. While the support received from the immediate and wider environment may essentially contribute to both disabled and non-disabled mothers’ self-efficacy and maternal competence in the postnatal period, social support is a particularly important factor in disabled women’s motherhood experiences, since relying on a supporting matrix help them keep their emotional balance and well-being while facing the day-to-day challenges of motherhood (Walsh-Gallagher et al., 2012; Stern & Tamás, 2004).

Both NS and VI participants frequently thematized their motherhood experiences in the context of roles and principles. However, while NS mothers primarily focused on the reconciliation between different female roles (woman, wife, mother), VI mothers tended to associate the maternal role with a secure base for the child. This special emphasis is possibly related to disabled women’s tendency to develop counter-narratives of motherhood (Lappeteläinen et al., 2018) in response to the stigma assuming their parental incompetence and their children’s exposure to risk (Malacrida, 2009; Prilleltensky, 2004). The special emphasis on providing security and support for the child in VI mothers’ accounts possibly reflects the impact of stigmatization. Parenting principles were rather linked to activities, expectations and tasks (e.g. care, teaching and learning). Both NS and VI mothers thematized caregiving and responsibility as the most important parenting principles. VI mothers often emphasized the importance of reciprocal teaching and learning and mutual adaptation in the mother–child relationship, whereas NS mothers thematized an asymmetrical relationship between them and their children as teachers and learners, respectively. VI mothers’ verbal and nonverbal interactions with their children reflect increased sensitivity and enhanced adaptation to each other’s interactional needs, which demonstrates the flexibility of human communication (Ganea et al., 2018; Senju et al., 2013). Availability was another important parenting principle thematized by both subsamples. However, VI mothers tended to strictly tie their availability to the child’s needs, which may also be part of a counter-narrative, considering the popularity of the stereotypical belief that disabled parents, driven by a protective intention, are often excessively involved in their children’s lives. Contrary to this belief, however, the existing empirical literature suggests that VI parents in fact strive to avoid overprotection, which they may themselves experienced in their childhood (Kálmán & Könczei, 2002). Number of children may have an impact on mentioning availability as an important parenting principle in both group, as in the relevant example the VI mother (VI 7) have 4, the NS mother (NS 9) have 3 children.

Motherhood is frequently regarded as a calling by VI mothers (Lendvai & Nguyen Luu Lan, 2019). The present study revealed an interesting difference between the two subsamples in this context. While VI mothers tended to equate motherhood with a calling or career, NS mothers focused on the importance of reconciliating motherhood with a professional career. The career choices of the VI and NS mothers do not differ significantly from each other (or at least we have no data that the career options would be significantly altered for them), so this does not explain that the VI mothers would better identify motherhood with career. However both NS mothers have an infant (younger than one year), which may have an impact on thinking about motherhood as a calling.

Limitations and Future Directions

The inclusive (participatory) methodology employed in the present study fulfilled the principle of nothing about us without us by ensuring the necessary conditions for active participation. The insider perspective was consistently prioritized throughout the planning and implementation of the study, including the data analysis and the interpretation of the obtained results. These potential effects were intended to be counterbalanced by the involvement of a VI researcher in the analysis and interpretation of the obtained data. The interpretive framework of the study was in large part determined by the participants’ personal experiences, which provided better insight into the phenomena addressed in the relevant literature (French & Swain, 2004; as cited in Kálmán & Könczei, 2002). A novel methodological element of the study was the involvement of a VI researcher in the thematic analysis of the interviews.

The reliability of the obtained findings was supported by ensuring consistent conditions for the interviews including the involvement of a specific interviewer (first author) in the entire process of data collection and the invariable composition of the interview questions. Both the interviewer’s and the interviewees’ personal reflections shared at the end of the interviews were recorded and analyzed.

The main limitation of the study considers its group approach. Applying group approach in the thematic analysis resulted in relative ignorance of personal aspects of the lived experience, which meant we did not investigate motherhood experiences of each women individually. Although we made an attempt to investigate how the personal-social characteristics of the women intertwine with the major feature of being disabled, so as to provide a detailed examination of the individual experience and take more into account the heterogeneity of our sample, interpretative phenomenological approach (IPA, Smith, 2004) might be a proper method for future research.

Another limitation of the study is related to the composition of the VI subsample, in which three participants had additional health conditions besides their visual impairment, which further increased their vulnerability and thus potentially influenced their motherhood experiences.

The study presents disabled and non-disabled women’s motherhood experiences in a first-person perspective. The declared objective of the present study is to call attention to the importance and challenges of disabled women’s social inclusion, and shed light to the influential effects of social attitudes, prejudices on visually impaired mothers' identity.