Deconstructing Idealized Motherhood: The Extreme Case of Neonaticidal Women

• Author: Luísa Saavedra,Miguel Cameira
• DOI: 10.1177/1557085116688779
• Published date: 01 December 2018
• Date: 01 December 2018
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/1557085116688779

Feminist Criminology

2018, Vol. 13(5) 543 –559

© The Author(s) 2017

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DOI: 10.1177/1557085116688779

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Article

Deconstructing Idealized

Motherhood: The Extreme

Case of Neonaticidal Women

Luísa Saavedra1 and Miguel Cameira2

Abstract

In this article, we provide a feminist perspective on neonaticidal women while critically

examining the mainstream literature. We analyze 26 cases reported between 2003

and 2013 in a Portuguese online newspaper. We conclude that neonaticide must be

framed by two main lines of thought: Motherhood is a social construction that imposes

difficult-to-achieve norms, and it is a complex experience, intercepted by age, social

class, marital status, and having other children. This approach should encourage a

shift from the present focus on palliative and punitive measures to a more preemptive

one including new policies on sexual education and pregnancy termination.

Keywords

neonaticide, feminisms, motherhood, violence, intersectionality

Feminist approaches have made important theoretical contributions to describing the

social and cultural dimensions of motherhood while deconstructing the biological per-

spective through which it is traditionally viewed (Badinter, 1981; de Beauvoir,

1949/1989; Irigaray, 1974/1985; Rich, 1995). However, few feminist studies have

focused on the implications of these social constructions for neonaticidal mothers (for

important exceptions, see, for example, Alder & Baker, 1997; Dougherty, 1993).

In this article, we offer a feminist approach to neonaticide and neonaticidal mothers

and illustrate this approach with an analysis of real-life cases collected from a

Portuguese newspaper. We do not claim that these cases are representative of the

Portuguese reality.1 Nevertheless, we believe that these cases allow different conclusions

1University of Minho, Braga, Portugal

2Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciencias da Educacao Universidade do Porto, Portugal

Corresponding Author:

Luísa Saavedra, School of Psychology, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, Braga 4710-057, Portugal.

Email: lsaavedra@psi.uminho.pt

688779FCXXXX10.1177/1557085116688779Feminist CriminologySaavedra and Cameira

research-article2017

544 Feminist Criminology 13(5)

from those reached by the mainstream approach, and encourage new interpretations

for future studies in Portugal and elsewhere.

Overall, we conclude that neonaticide must be framed by three main lines of

thought: that motherhood is a social and cultural construction (e.g., Badinter, 1981; de

Beauvoir, 1949/1989; Irigaray, 1974/1985; Rich, 1995) that imposes difficult-to-

achieve norms, particularly for women of disadvantaged social and economic back-

grounds; that motherhood is a complex, contradictory experience, particularly for

those who do not fit the ideals of traditional femininity; and, finally, that the intersec-

tions of age, social class, marital status, and having previously been a mother are cru-

cial in explaining this crime.2

We begin by introducing the underpinnings of the clinical/mainstream approach to

neonaticide and proceed by describing the need for a coherent, comprehensive femi-

nist approach to motherhood with respect to this crime. While searching scientific

databases for previous studies on this subject, we concluded that the number of articles

containing rigorous quantitative data on neonaticide was quite limited. Therefore, we

decided to list them all followed by the features that were important to our own results

(Table 1).

Neonaticidal Women: The Mainstream View

Research on neonaticidal mothers originated in the United States with a study by

Resnick (1970) that distinguished these women from those who kill their older chil-

dren. Resnick’s and subsequent studies concluded that unlike mothers who kill their

older children, women who commit neonaticide do not typically present major psy-

chological disorders (e.g., Ciani & Fontanesi, 2012; Herman-Giddens et al., 2003;

Oberman, 1996; Riley, 2006; Shelton, Corey, Donaldson, & Dennison, 2011).

Neonaticidal women are also described as young, single, and poor. Nevertheless,

recent European studies have increasingly reported a larger number of older women

(e.g., Amon et al., 2012; Putkonen, Weizmann-Henelius, Collander, Santtila, and

Eronen, 2007), most of whom are single (Baralic et al., 2010; Marcikić et al., 2006;

Mendlowicz, Rapaport, Mecler, Golshan, & Moraes, 1998; Putkonen et al., 2007;

Resnick, 1970; see Table 1). They are also typically described as either having denied

their pregnancy or having concealed it from family and friends (e.g., Friedman,

Cavney, & Resnick, 2012; Oberman, 1996; Resnick, 1970).

In these studies, one of the primary motives presented for maternal neonaticide is

the mother’s lack of resources required to successfully raise a child (e.g., Oberman,

1996). Several authors also discuss the lack of social support from the families or

partners of neonaticidal mothers and such mothers’ anticipation of the negative reac-

tions or disapproval of others (e.g., Friedman et al., 2012; Riley, 2006). Other motives

include strict religious backgrounds and taboos associated with premarital sex

(Friedman & Resnick, 2009; Mendlowicz et al., 1998; Milner, 2000; Oberman, 1996;

Riley, 2006; Wessel, Endrikat, & Ulrich, 2003).

Fear of the opinions of and rejection by others correlates with two of the most dis-

tinctive features of neonaticidal women: the concealment and denial of pregnancy