S1E2: Part 2: The Glamorization of Motherhood on Social Media with Dr. Kirkpatrick
Nebraska Extension Early Childhood Program Area- Emily Manning, Dr. Holly Hatton, Erin Kampbell, Ingrid Lindal, Linda Reddish, Katie Krause, and LaDonna Werth
Author
08/28/2023
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Description
We continue our interview with Dr. Kirkpatrick about her research on how the portrayal of motherhood on social media can impact new mothers' mental health and well-being. Dr. Kirkpatrick shares her experiences as a first-time mother and tips for using navigate social media in a healthy way.
Notes:
https://www.babycenter.com/mobile-apps
The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined All Women by Susan J. Douglas & Meredith W. Michaels (2005) Free Press.
References:
Kirkpatrick, C. & Lee, S. (2022). Comparisons to picture-picture motherhood: How Instagram’s idealized portrayals of motherhood affect new mothers’ well-being. Computers in Human Behavior,137, 107417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107417
https://journalism.unl.edu/kirkpatrick-ciera
The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Afterparty Review by Sascha Ende
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/2962-afterparty-review
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Searchable Transcript
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- [00:00:00.000](energetic ominous music)
- [00:00:08.430]This is "The Good Life and Early Life,"
- [00:00:11.100]a production of Nebraska Extension.
- [00:00:12.870]I'm your host, Emily Manning,
- [00:00:14.370]an Early Childhood Extension Educator in Seward County.
- [00:00:17.400]In this episode, we are continuing our interview
- [00:00:20.250]with Dr. Kirkpatrick, an Assistant Professor
- [00:00:22.500]of Advertising and Public Relations
- [00:00:24.390]at the College of Journalism and Mass Communications.
- [00:00:27.030]If you haven't already listened to Part One
- [00:00:28.950]of this interview, I highly recommend you listen
- [00:00:30.990]to that first and then come back and listen to this episode
- [00:00:33.810]where we continue to discuss Navigating Motherhood
- [00:00:36.510]and the Wild Wild World of Social Media.
- [00:00:38.820]We are gonna pick right up where we left off
- [00:00:40.830]with my next question for Dr. Kirkpatrick.
- [00:00:43.980]What were some things that helped you
- [00:00:45.780]when you were a new mother in navigating social media?
- [00:00:49.470]I think, for me, a big thing is I tried
- [00:00:51.000]to be a little more conscious of how I was feeling based off
- [00:00:53.880]of the posts I was seeing.
- [00:00:55.020]So, there were a few influencers who just, every time,
- [00:00:57.600]I would see their posts like I would feel bad about myself.
- [00:01:00.060]And so, I had to start, you know, kind of recognizing that
- [00:01:02.550]and asking myself like, why am I following this person
- [00:01:04.560]if they only make me feel terrible?
- [00:01:06.330]Like is it worth it?
- [00:01:07.590]And so, you know, unfollowing people is very helpful
- [00:01:10.860]but also having a mix of who I follow has been helpful.
- [00:01:14.280]So, I do follow, you know, some of the influencers
- [00:01:17.910]who only post idealized portrayals but I also make sure
- [00:01:20.820]that I have I other portrayals showing up
- [00:01:23.760]on my timelines too.
- [00:01:24.660]So, I'm seeing content that is more realistic
- [00:01:27.810]that I can relate to that helps me remember
- [00:01:30.300]that I'm not alone in this
- [00:01:31.740]that other people are going through the same things.
- [00:01:33.690]And so, in terms of social media that's
- [00:01:35.220]kind of how I've dealt with it.
- [00:01:36.720]But then also, it's important to think
- [00:01:38.220]about our lives outside of social media too.
- [00:01:40.170]So, not spending too much time on it but also,
- [00:01:42.300]making sure that we kind of foster relationships
- [00:01:44.820]with real mothers in the real world.
- [00:01:46.770]So, I was very fortunate that I had other close friends
- [00:01:49.950]who became parents around the same time as me.
- [00:01:51.990]And so, having them as a support group to vent to,
- [00:01:54.810]to hear about experiences from, and know that like, okay,
- [00:01:58.080]we're all dealing with figuring out
- [00:02:00.240]the bedtime-routine situation or the debate of, you know,
- [00:02:03.510]breastfeeding versus formula.
- [00:02:05.160]So, having real people that you can compare to
- [00:02:08.160]in real life not just on social media and share experiences
- [00:02:11.220]with has been really helpful.
- [00:02:12.600]I love that advice.
- [00:02:13.590]That's just really sound advice for new moms and just people
- [00:02:17.280]in general just to be critical of their social media usage
- [00:02:20.340]and how it's impacting them and their mental health
- [00:02:22.710]and just really being critical.
- [00:02:23.707]Yeah, and it can be so hard to, you know, remember that,
- [00:02:27.240]okay, like this isn't what real life is like
- [00:02:30.240]and to like recognize the effects
- [00:02:32.220]that it's having on you and like get yourself
- [00:02:34.230]to realize you should take more breaks from it.
- [00:02:36.420]Follow different people.
- [00:02:37.890]It can be hard, so.
- [00:02:38.970]Yeah, I think, I don't know,
- [00:02:40.740]I probably should have looked into like a research on this
- [00:02:42.990]but I think like we have like a craving for beauty
- [00:02:46.230]and we really want that in our life.
- [00:02:48.420]And so, we enjoy seeing these ideal images
- [00:02:51.060]because it just satisfies that need
- [00:02:52.830]for like beauty and order.
- [00:02:54.720]But we gotta balance that with reality too,
- [00:02:57.590](laughs) which is not always fun to pour a dose of reality
- [00:03:00.540]on the things but- Yeah, I know,
- [00:03:01.373]some influencers, and people
- [00:03:03.140]on social media make it really fun though.
- [00:03:04.800]There's one person on TikTok I recently came across
- [00:03:08.010]who she does like these like tours of her house to show just
- [00:03:12.330]how chaotic things it's, and she's like, "Yeah,
- [00:03:15.510]before we had our kids, my husband
- [00:03:17.070]and I like promised each other no toys in the living room.
- [00:03:19.530]Like they'd stay in the playroom, and now look
- [00:03:22.440]at their living room, like there's toys everywhere."
- [00:03:24.870]And she showed like a half-eaten strawberry
- [00:03:26.880]and like the nightstand. (Ciera laughs)
- [00:03:28.980]And it's just like, it's- That's just life, yeah.
- [00:03:31.980]But that's what it's like.
- [00:03:32.910]Like it's so realistic, and it makes you laugh
- [00:03:36.090]and like remember like, okay,
- [00:03:37.290]like what's happening, it's okay.
- [00:03:38.560]Other people are going through this just like I am.
- [00:03:41.370]Yes.
- [00:03:42.203]How can we use social media to be supportive?
- [00:03:44.520]Because like you said, everyday users can be a form
- [00:03:48.540]of like these idealized images
- [00:03:50.220]and we can have an impact on others.
- [00:03:52.320]So, how can we use this to be supportive of other people?
- [00:03:56.520]I think we've kind of talked about it a little bit, and-
- [00:03:58.328]Yeah, so I think just being kind of conscious
- [00:04:02.520]of what we're posting.
- [00:04:03.540]So, we all want to post the happy perfect fun posts
- [00:04:07.290]and that's okay, like we should be able to do those things.
- [00:04:09.300]We should be able to brag about our kids and share
- [00:04:11.160]the happy, exciting moments that we have.
- [00:04:13.530]It's just important to also think about, you know,
- [00:04:15.990]what effects we might be having with our posts
- [00:04:18.180]and you know maybe consider sharing some of the stuff
- [00:04:21.060]that's not so idealized.
- [00:04:22.110]So, not worrying about how clean the house is
- [00:04:24.420]or how well-dressed the kid is before posting
- [00:04:27.180]but also, maybe showing also some of the difficulties
- [00:04:30.060]that are associated.
- [00:04:30.900]I have tried really hard to do a better job of this
- [00:04:34.290]since doing this research because I was, you know,
- [00:04:36.210]putting a lot of just positive idealized content out there.
- [00:04:39.660]But now I make a point to, you know,
- [00:04:41.640]talk about the difficulties too.
- [00:04:43.260]You know, when my kid didn't wanna go to daycare
- [00:04:46.020]and communicated that to me by throwing his hat
- [00:04:48.210]in the toilet, I took a picture of it and it's like,
- [00:04:50.430]you know what, this is how our morning's going.
- [00:04:52.770]Like how's yours. (both laughing)
- [00:04:54.930]And then, we also have a bit of a unique situation
- [00:04:58.320]in that our son has some pretty bad developmental delays
- [00:05:02.340]and that's been really stressful for us
- [00:05:03.780]but we've kind of shared about it and been open
- [00:05:05.820]about it on social media and that's been really great
- [00:05:08.220]because people that are in my social media network
- [00:05:11.100]who are going through the same things as me
- [00:05:12.780]but I didn't even realize it have reached out,
- [00:05:14.820]and be like, "Hey, this is what we went through.
- [00:05:16.500]This is what worked and didn't work for us."
- [00:05:18.060]You know, every situation's so different, but to know
- [00:05:20.130]that someone else has gone through this
- [00:05:22.110]and to get to hear their experience can be really helpful,
- [00:05:25.410]especially at a time when you feel really isolated
- [00:05:27.720]and discouraged, and so, you know, being a support system,
- [00:05:31.320]reaching out to people that we can, you know,
- [00:05:33.870]provide support to but also showing those
- [00:05:36.390]more realistic portrayals,
- [00:05:37.980]all of this can be kind of a way to help each other out
- [00:05:41.130]and just create a community which I think is
- [00:05:42.960]the most important thing is to be there for each other
- [00:05:45.150]through the good and the bad.
- [00:05:46.800]Yeah, so just being a community,
- [00:05:49.380]reaching out to people, being supportive,
- [00:05:51.330]being mindful and intentional about what we post
- [00:05:55.320]so that we're posting a more well-rounded image of our life,
- [00:05:58.560]I think can be helpful.
- [00:05:59.760]Yeah, go ahead. One that like
- [00:06:01.350]kind of comes up for me
- [00:06:02.670]and I know other mothers too in thinking about
- [00:06:04.470]what we post online is like we're posting pictures
- [00:06:06.750]of our children, a lot of times without them knowing
- [00:06:09.240]or giving their consent to.
- [00:06:10.590]And so, like, do we want to put, you know, pictures
- [00:06:12.750]of them crying on the internet to live forever
- [00:06:15.180]just so that we can look more, you know, relatable.
- [00:06:17.580]But I think social media has some options for us to kind of,
- [00:06:21.540]you know, do this in a way that's not feeling quite
- [00:06:24.360]as significant in terms of it living on forever.
- [00:06:27.030]So, I tend to use like the Instagram stories,
- [00:06:30.060]and reels feature a lot to kind of show these things.
- [00:06:32.820]Like I don't want this picture of, you know,
- [00:06:35.550]my kid putting something in the toilet to be
- [00:06:37.590]on my feed forever, but I can, you know,
- [00:06:40.050]put it out there temporarily for people to see
- [00:06:42.330]and have access to.
- [00:06:43.470]And it still helps to curate that balance
- [00:06:45.600]of the good and the bad and give more of a look into
- [00:06:48.210]what our lives are really like.
- [00:06:49.740]That's something that I thought about a lot
- [00:06:52.170]with the consent feature
- [00:06:53.640]with kiddos because they can't give consent.
- [00:06:55.920]And this is just so new I think, to a lot of us
- [00:06:58.890]because when I was young, my mom would take a picture
- [00:07:02.010]like a funny picture of me and she'd print it out
- [00:07:04.470]and it would just stay in like the family photo album.
- [00:07:06.840]And we had a lot of control over who got
- [00:07:08.760]to see those photos.
- [00:07:10.500]But now like anybody could pop onto
- [00:07:12.450]like a mom's social media page and like look through
- [00:07:15.120]and like see this history.
- [00:07:17.190]So, it's kind of interesting and it's a fine line
- [00:07:20.100]to walk and I don't wanna put more pressures on new moms
- [00:07:23.310]but it's definitely something
- [00:07:24.480]that I thought about as well.
- [00:07:26.460]Like your advice though of like being able to share that
- [00:07:29.400]but do it in a way that isn't permanent.
- [00:07:31.620]Like by keeping it on the story it-
- [00:07:32.453]We can still, you know,
- [00:07:34.230]people can screenshot it or it can
- [00:07:36.150]still show up down the road.
- [00:07:37.920]But you know, just being a little more mindful
- [00:07:39.870]about how we're posting it,
- [00:07:41.760]what we're posting once our kids get old enough
- [00:07:44.340]to be able to have a conversation about
- [00:07:46.230]what we're posting and listening to kind of
- [00:07:48.630]what their wishes are.
- [00:07:50.010]I think all of that's important too.
- [00:07:51.540]Yeah, definitely agree with that.
- [00:07:53.190]You talked about communities and groups that
- [00:07:55.320]kind of found you on social media.
- [00:07:57.210]Have you found like specific communities and groups
- [00:08:00.420]that have like become really organized and are very focused
- [00:08:04.740]on supporting new moms
- [00:08:06.540]that are using social media very intentionally.
- [00:08:09.090]Kind of the first thing that comes to mind
- [00:08:10.650]which this isn't social media but it's still a form
- [00:08:13.500]of mediated communication was a big one, for me,
- [00:08:15.660]was the baby center website and app.
- [00:08:18.660]Oh. They like create
- [00:08:20.670]a support group for people that have
- [00:08:23.250]the same like birth month as you
- [00:08:26.190]Oh, I love that.
- [00:08:27.677]So, it was all mothers who, you know gave birth
- [00:08:31.440]in May of 2020 or around May,
- [00:08:33.480]yeah, you know, we're all going
- [00:08:34.710]through this pandemic baby situation together
- [00:08:37.620]and you could ask each other different questions
- [00:08:40.650]and give advice and share experiences.
- [00:08:43.620]And that was really cool because we were all going
- [00:08:45.630]through it at the same time and our kiddos were all around
- [00:08:47.520]the same age, so like it was easy to be able
- [00:08:50.580]to make comparisons that were more relevant
- [00:08:53.010]because we were all in the situation together
- [00:08:55.620]and having kids the same age
- [00:08:56.820]but on social media, there's also
- [00:08:58.590]like opportunities for that too.
- [00:09:00.900]So, my son was diagnosed with autism earlier this year,
- [00:09:04.110]and so since then, we like I joined an autism support group
- [00:09:08.460]on Facebook which can be a bit overwhelming
- [00:09:11.400]at times and I tend to like, I unfollow it
- [00:09:14.520]but then, we'll go there if I am seeking advice
- [00:09:17.430]or wanna read about a certain situation or see
- [00:09:19.950]what other people have been through in their experiences.
- [00:09:22.200]But that can be a great way to, again,
- [00:09:23.790]find those people who are similar to you,
- [00:09:25.650]going through similar things, learn from their experiences.
- [00:09:28.800]I also am in like a group on Facebook
- [00:09:31.590]for just like this workout gear that I really like
- [00:09:34.800]and there's like a moms group for like moms
- [00:09:37.080]who wear. (laughs) This workout brand.
- [00:09:39.260]And it's great, it's just a bunch of women
- [00:09:41.970]like supporting each other and cheering each other on
- [00:09:45.360]and you know, asking about their adoption experiences
- [00:09:48.570]or their experiences giving birth and like,
- [00:09:50.730]so there's just so many different ways
- [00:09:52.320]that these support groups can kind of cultivate
- [00:09:53.910]and you kind of have to dig and find them sometimes,
- [00:09:56.190]you know, depending on what exactly you're interested in.
- [00:09:59.280]But a lot of the times there's just a ton out there to find
- [00:10:02.670]and they're pretty supportive.
- [00:10:03.870]I mean it's just a good way to kind of get
- [00:10:06.240]to know other people that maybe you don't know in real life
- [00:10:08.670]but that can connect with you and help you feel
- [00:10:10.560]like you're not alone in this.
- [00:10:11.730]I really love your story about the workout gear being this
- [00:10:15.450]like common experience that has
- [00:10:16.980]like bonded you together, and then you're sharing all these
- [00:10:19.830]like struggles and everyday experiences and it's just,
- [00:10:23.280]and it's because you love workout gear like the same brand
- [00:10:25.680]that's so I love that, I love that.
- [00:10:27.630]But I think it just shows that like there's anything
- [00:10:30.240]that you're interested in or really passionate about,
- [00:10:32.460]there's a niche for you in social media
- [00:10:34.320]and you will find belonging and so don't be afraid
- [00:10:36.840]of searching that out.
- [00:10:38.430]And that sense of belonging could be very like validating
- [00:10:41.850]and helpful and just give you kind of like a light
- [00:10:44.310]in the darkness, I think.
- [00:10:45.570]Yes. Yeah.
- [00:10:46.403]For me, it's definitely just, you know, it's a way
- [00:10:49.080]to like celebrate other people
- [00:10:50.670]and what they're going through and their successes,
- [00:10:52.200]but also a way when you're going through challenges
- [00:10:54.570]to get input from other people who have been through
- [00:10:56.520]the same thing and to hear what has worked for them,
- [00:10:58.800]so that you can try to figure out what's gonna work
- [00:11:00.450]for you in your situation, yeah.
- [00:11:02.280]That's the beauty of social media.
- [00:11:04.410]And so, there's beauty and then there's
- [00:11:05.910]that dark side of social media.
- [00:11:06.743]Absolutely. Gotta wade through it all.
- [00:11:09.270]Wade through it all. So, I'm just
- [00:11:10.830]kind of been chewing over the idea of like
- [00:11:13.950]kind of like the motivations and the role
- [00:11:17.010]of these like idealized images of motherhood in the media.
- [00:11:21.480]And I think a quote from the article which I think is
- [00:11:24.960]like right at the beginning kind of like points out to like
- [00:11:28.230]what I'm thinking but I'm gonna read this quote
- [00:11:30.840]from the article, it says,
- [00:11:31.777]"Furthermore, global fertility rates are falling
- [00:11:35.070]with many women choosing not to have children or choosing
- [00:11:37.830]to have fewer children than mothers of past generations
- [00:11:41.310]which is from Gallagher 2020.
- [00:11:43.290]As there are many factors influencing these decisions
- [00:11:45.990]for women, it is important to understand
- [00:11:48.090]the role of media ecosystem
- [00:11:50.160]and its communication technologies that mothers
- [00:11:52.860]and potential mothers are in as the pressures
- [00:11:55.680]from social media could influence
- [00:11:57.660]when and if a woman decides to have children."
- [00:12:00.990]Ultimately, kinda what that part
- [00:12:02.180]of the article is touching on is this idea that, you know,
- [00:12:05.610]we get to choose, you know,
- [00:12:07.200]whether or not we want to have children.
- [00:12:09.720]And a lot of people and these days are choosing not
- [00:12:11.940]to have children and there's a lot of reasons
- [00:12:13.500]for that where they're choosing to have less kids.
- [00:12:15.300]You know, when I, my husband and I were talking
- [00:12:18.360]about our family and what we wanted, I wanted four children.
- [00:12:21.810]And now, that I've had my son, I'm like,
- [00:12:23.737]"Hmm, he'll be lucky if he gets a sibling."
- [00:12:25.084](Emily laughs)
- [00:12:26.243]Mainly because it's just so much harder.
- [00:12:28.860]Yeah, I thought it was gonna be, plus we've, you know,
- [00:12:31.860]had unexpected things come up too.
- [00:12:33.660]But you know, having a child is a huge thing
- [00:12:36.810]and it's very difficult for a lot of different reasons,
- [00:12:39.390]you know, both in terms of, you know,
- [00:12:41.100]the physical effects of it, but also, you know,
- [00:12:44.010]it's expensive to have a kid, especially in today's world
- [00:12:47.130]and you know, it's not easy to afford daycare
- [00:12:51.090]and still be able to work and feel
- [00:12:53.160]like you're doing a good job in these different roles
- [00:12:55.680]Or even find daycare in Nebraska. (laughs)
- [00:12:57.510]Yeah Find daycare for sure.
- [00:12:59.580]Oh, my goodness, the waitlists are insane.
- [00:13:01.170]Yes. But, so there's a lot
- [00:13:03.420]of different factors that influence, you know
- [00:13:06.060]when and if we choose to have children
- [00:13:08.040]but I strongly believe based on this research
- [00:13:10.590]that the reading, the media can play into those effects too.
- [00:13:14.100]And so, the media helps, you know, communicate this message
- [00:13:18.600]of like, having children is a fun, important
- [00:13:22.560]enjoyable thing you should do
- [00:13:23.940]but you also need to be an amazing wife or a partner
- [00:13:27.210]an amazing person at work, you know, a professional.
- [00:13:30.420]You need to be able to succeed
- [00:13:31.800]in all of these roles, but that's not physically possible.
- [00:13:34.740]You cannot, you know, be the best at every single
- [00:13:36.930]one of these things that you're trying to do.
- [00:13:38.370]Like something always has to give.
- [00:13:39.960]And so, you know,
- [00:13:41.190]the increased pressure that the media puts on mothers,
- [00:13:45.000]I think, plays into how we are feeling emotionally
- [00:13:48.750]and where we're at in terms of our mental health.
- [00:13:51.120]And that can influence, you know, whether or not
- [00:13:52.740]we want to have more children or have a family at all.
- [00:13:55.650]And, yeah, thinking back to those celebrity mom pro profiles
- [00:13:59.460]in the seventies and eighties, you know
- [00:14:01.170]they did communicate this message of, you know,
- [00:14:03.900]like your life isn't complete until you have a child
- [00:14:06.300]which definitely was affecting women back then
- [00:14:08.550]and making them feel like, "Oh, my gosh,
- [00:14:09.960]I have to have a kid," and I'm sure
- [00:14:11.790]some of that is still happening now, especially, you know,
- [00:14:14.640]with some messaging that is put out online.
- [00:14:16.650]But I do tend to see a lot of messaging
- [00:14:19.710]from people I follow about like how they've chosen not
- [00:14:22.590]to have children and how they're happy with that decision
- [00:14:24.990]and you know, that's what's right for them.
- [00:14:26.610]And I think that's what's important is
- [00:14:28.020]that we're all different people.
- [00:14:29.760]We all have different desires and backgrounds
- [00:14:32.310]and experiences, and what's right
- [00:14:34.260]for one person isn't right for another.
- [00:14:35.910]And I think, you know, that's part of what we need
- [00:14:37.560]to cultivate on social media too,
- [00:14:38.970]is recognizing those differences, and recognizing
- [00:14:41.280]that what I want isn't the same as what everyone else wants
- [00:14:43.710]and that's okay, like we should respect what goals
- [00:14:46.380]and plans other people have for their lives.
- [00:14:48.270]But, yeah, I think the media, you know plays
- [00:14:50.280]into what we think our goals should be
- [00:14:52.317]and what we should be doing and that can be stressful.
- [00:14:56.160]Absolutely, so I really enjoyed reading
- [00:14:59.040]about your research and you're relatively new
- [00:15:01.590]to the research field and so I'm excited for the future
- [00:15:04.770]that you're gonna have here at UNL.
- [00:15:06.840]Will you be building on this research in the future
- [00:15:08.880]and what can we expect from you?
- [00:15:10.410]Yes, I hope so.
- [00:15:11.400]So, right now I'm working on a paper that is very similar
- [00:15:14.760]in terms of kind of this idea of the effects
- [00:15:16.740]of idealized portrayals of motherhood on social media.
- [00:15:19.230]But I want to look
- [00:15:20.970]at how certain mothers may be more susceptible
- [00:15:23.880]to the harmful effects.
- [00:15:24.900]So, you know, if you tend to be someone
- [00:15:27.750]who just doesn't have great self-esteem in life, are you
- [00:15:30.450]more detrimentally affected by these portrayals, and there's
- [00:15:33.870]also a term called "Social comparison orientation,"
- [00:15:36.960]that refers to like how important social comparisons are
- [00:15:40.260]to us individually.
- [00:15:41.520]So, some people are more inclined
- [00:15:43.050]to compare than other people.
- [00:15:44.370]And so, I'm looking at differences in mothers
- [00:15:46.350]in terms of, you know,
- [00:15:47.183]how someone's social comparison orientation influences
- [00:15:50.430]how the effects or the posts influence them.
- [00:15:53.700]And then, I'm also looking at some different outcomes.
- [00:15:56.580]And so, instead of just envying anxiety
- [00:15:58.440]how are these posts influencing things
- [00:16:00.780]like our life satisfaction
- [00:16:02.760]and how we perceive our parenting ability?
- [00:16:05.220]So, do these posts make us feel worse
- [00:16:07.350]about our ability to be a parent?
- [00:16:09.780]So, you know, there's a lot of different outcomes involved
- [00:16:12.510]in this and that these posts may be affecting.
- [00:16:14.700]And so, I really wanna explore that more.
- [00:16:16.170]I'd also love to kind of look at like the other side
- [00:16:19.470]of this seeing how we could create strategic messaging
- [00:16:22.080]to help mitigate these negative effects.
- [00:16:24.060]So, how can we, I guess,
- [00:16:25.500]strategic health communicators help women recognize
- [00:16:28.860]that this is happening and know how they can do things
- [00:16:33.120]to help them not have negative effects from it.
- [00:16:35.010]So, I'm not sure what that'll look like yet but I'd love
- [00:16:37.350]to explore how we can help curb this problem
- [00:16:39.930]for mothers too.
- [00:16:41.140]Yeah, yeah, you talked about in your article,
- [00:16:44.430]and I think in your Lincoln Journal Star interview too
- [00:16:47.880]that you wanted to
- [00:16:49.113]like have hospitals start creating educational videos
- [00:16:52.680]for new moms. Yes.
- [00:16:53.820]Talking about what's happening to kind of prepare them.
- [00:16:56.970]So, when I had my son, my husband and I weren't allowed
- [00:16:59.940]to leave the hospital
- [00:17:00.810]until we had watched a series of videos.
- [00:17:02.760]Oh, my goodness, that's- Yeah.
- [00:17:04.560]Really controlling- They were very
- [00:17:05.482]outdated and needed to be like (laughs) a video and like
- [00:17:09.630]the benefits of breastfeeding, a video about like SIDS
- [00:17:14.340]and shaken baby syndrome, and basically,
- [00:17:16.020]all these different things that they wanted
- [00:17:17.640]to warn you about.
- [00:17:18.690]And they were all very focused on the child
- [00:17:20.790]which is, of course, important, but what about the mother?
- [00:17:23.190]You know, there's no reason why we can't
- [00:17:24.990]also have these resources that help mothers to recognize
- [00:17:28.680]that this is a problem and that this could happen to them.
- [00:17:30.930]And so, what are the signs
- [00:17:32.250]that you know can help you realize that this is happening?
- [00:17:34.650]And how can you cope with this and get help?
- [00:17:37.200]And so, I think that having some form of communication
- [00:17:40.770]that you know, is there in place to help mothers
- [00:17:43.590]with this would be really awesome.
- [00:17:45.060]Yeah, definitely, definitely helpful.
- [00:17:46.860]And especially like right
- [00:17:47.790]from the get-go and having that support.
- [00:17:50.670]Yeah, and maybe even a movement to create
- [00:17:53.130]to post more realistic photos of motherhood.
- [00:17:55.140]Any final thoughts you wanna share?
- [00:17:56.850]You know, every day is a journey with, you know,
- [00:18:00.210]being a researcher and a mom, and being someone
- [00:18:02.970]on social media, you know, it's so hard to, you know,
- [00:18:06.240]just go through the day-to-day action sometimes.
- [00:18:08.670]But, you know, I think we just, you know,
- [00:18:10.860]need to take things a day at a time and remember
- [00:18:13.260]that we are all in this together.
- [00:18:15.180]So, you know, we all choose what we show online
- [00:18:18.810]and we create this depiction of ourselves
- [00:18:21.330]that we put out there in the world.
- [00:18:22.680]But, you know, not being afraid to share some of the stuff
- [00:18:25.800]that we might not at first be inclined
- [00:18:27.960]to share is important.
- [00:18:29.310]And, you know, being supportive of each other
- [00:18:31.470]and recognizing all of the difficulties
- [00:18:33.480]that are associated with motherhood.
- [00:18:35.160]You know, it's just important to keep these things,
- [00:18:37.290]you know, kind of top of mind and be there for each other.
- [00:18:40.050]Great, awesome.
- [00:18:41.700]So, if listeners want to start following you
- [00:18:44.280]and hearing updates from you, how can they do that?
- [00:18:47.070]Yeah, absolutely.
- [00:18:48.090]So, you can find me on social media. (laughs)
- [00:18:50.880]What's your handle? (laughs)
- [00:18:51.780]You can see my mix of idealized
- [00:18:55.710]and non-idealized portrayal of our motherhood experience.
- [00:18:59.648]So, yeah, people can find me on social media for one,
- [00:19:03.270]my Instagram is Dr_Ciera_K,
- [00:19:08.430]so that's D-R underscore C-I-E-R-A underscore K,
- [00:19:12.240]Dr_Ciera_K.
- [00:19:14.520]You'll see mostly just photos of my son and dog
- [00:19:17.160]but kind of can see how I'm trying to curate that mix
- [00:19:21.390]of the idealized and non-idealized portrayals
- [00:19:24.540]of our parenting and family experiences.
- [00:19:27.210]And I'm also on Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Scholar,
- [00:19:31.740]Facebook, pretty much,
- [00:19:33.540]you can find me anywhere, I have a TikTok
- [00:19:34.890]but just use it for research purposes, you know? (laughs)
- [00:19:37.744](Emily laughs) What other people are posting.
- [00:19:39.960]I haven't really jumped into posting myself.
- [00:19:43.080]My Twitter handle is the same as my Instagram, Dr_Ciera_K.
- [00:19:47.220]So, yeah, that's a great way to keep up with me.
- [00:19:49.020]You can also reach me by email.
- [00:19:51.540]I'm always happy to, yeah, chat about what I'm researching
- [00:19:54.900]and hear about what other ideas people have
- [00:19:57.060]or how my research might be influencing them
- [00:19:59.520]and getting them to think about things differently.
- [00:20:01.320]Yeah, and what's your email, is it your name?
- [00:20:03.360]It is, yeah, it's C-I-E-R-A.kirkpatrick,
- [00:20:07.500]K-I-R-K-P-A-T-R-I-C-K@unl.edu.
- [00:20:12.150]Great, thank you so much.
- [00:20:13.470]So, if you liked what Dr. Kirkpatrick mentioned today,
- [00:20:18.000]please, go and follow her, email her,
- [00:20:19.800]and follow her on Twitter.
- [00:20:21.480]All of the things because this is amazing.
- [00:20:23.370]She has some really great stuff going out there.
- [00:20:25.290]And I just wanna thank you for being
- [00:20:27.030]on the podcast today sharing your research results,
- [00:20:30.300]sharing your knowledge, and sharing your experiences
- [00:20:33.270]as a new mom.
- [00:20:34.290]I think that's really important for our listeners to hear.
- [00:20:36.810]And I think it's really relevant for Nebraska mothers too,
- [00:20:39.990]because they're experiencing this.
- [00:20:41.310]Yeah, and you know, it's important to think about the moms
- [00:20:44.280]and their health but it's also important to recognize that,
- [00:20:46.380]you know, if we're not taking care of ourselves
- [00:20:48.480]and in a healthy place as mothers,
- [00:20:49.920]then we can't take care of our kids too.
- [00:20:51.690]So, you know, it all trickles down and affects 'em too.
- [00:20:54.480]And so, this is just, yeah, a really important topic
- [00:20:56.940]and something that I'm really passionate about
- [00:20:59.100]and I really appreciative for the opportunity
- [00:21:01.670]to share about this.
- [00:21:02.850]And I appreciate your enthusiasm and interest
- [00:21:04.950]and it's been great. Yeah, absolutely, yeah.
- [00:21:07.080]Thank you once again.
- [00:21:08.250]Thanks for coming on the podcast, come back anytime.
- [00:21:10.621]Awesome, sounds great.
- [00:21:12.090]Thank you so much.
- [00:21:12.923]You bet.
- [00:21:13.756](energetic ominous music)
- [00:21:16.260]This has been an episode of The Good Life and Early Life,
- [00:21:19.470]a production of Nebraska Extension
- [00:21:21.120]in their early childhood team.
- [00:21:22.500]If you like the show, subscribe
- [00:21:23.910]and tell your friends to listen.
- [00:21:25.260]The show production team is Emily Manning, Dr. Holly Hatton,
- [00:21:28.860]Ingrid Lindal, Aaron Campbell, Linda Reddish,
- [00:21:31.890]Kim Welsand, and Katie Kraus.
- [00:21:33.750]See you next time, and thanks for listening.
- [00:21:35.895](energetic ominous music)
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