Helena Tolić

Dissertation Project:

"Constructions of a 'Good Mother' After Returning to Work"

The research is the analysis of the societal norms of a good mother in the specific context of motherhood during the time of returning to work from maternity leave. Contemporary constructions of a good mother are observed through interactions and encounters of different social expectations, ideas and notions about motherhood. Special emphasis is placed on the time after returning to work, and the clash and overlap of different expectations – that of a good mother and a successful worker or businesswoman – are more closely observed. The focus of the research is on mothers who work in a corporate context, which is why the city of Zagreb as the corporate center of Croatia is chosen as the research site. The research methodology consists of interviews, participatory observation, autoethnography, discourse analysis and creative research methods (drawing and writing). The maternal experience is analyzed from the perspective of mothers’ experiences, as a socio-cultural phenomenon through which motherhood expands beyond the concept of the mother-child relationship within the intimate sphere of the home.

Supervisor: Ass. Prof. Petra Kelemen