Maternal Identities and Narratives of Motherhood: A Qualitative Exploration of Women’s Pathways Into and Out of Offending

• Author: Janet Garcia-Hallett
• DOI: 10.1177/1557085118769741
• Published date: 01 April 2019
• Date: 01 April 2019
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/1557085118769741

Feminist Criminology

2019, Vol. 14(2) 214 –240

© The Author(s) 2018

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DOI: 10.1177/1557085118769741

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Article

Maternal Identities and

Narratives of Motherhood:

A Qualitative Exploration of

Women’s Pathways Into and

Out of Offending

Janet Garcia-Hallett1

Abstract

Existing research in criminology often focuses on changes in offending behaviors

over time. Yet, less is known about the role of gender in women’s offending and

little consideration is directed toward the integration of gender and parenthood in

understanding offending trajectories. This article examines how and when offending

and desisting pathways are shaped by motherhood. Interviews were conducted

with 37 mothers in New York City with histories of offending behaviors. The data

demonstrate how motherhood and maternal identities held more significance in some

social circumstances, contributing to offending pathways and presenting a variety of

challenges in some women’s desistance pathways.

Keywords

offending, gender, mothering, motherhood

Introduction

The life course framework often assumes similar processes for both males and females,

but some research has devoted more attention to existing gender differences in the

pathways into and out of offending (see Byrne & Trew, 2008; Giordano, Seffrin,

Manning, & Longmore, 2011; Schwartz & Steffensmeier, 2017; Steffensmeier &

Allan, 1996; Steffensmeier, Schwartz, & Roche, 2013). In their push for a gendered

theory of female offending, Steffensmeier and Allan (1996) stress the importance of

1University of Missouri–Kansas City, MO, USA

Corresponding Author:

Janet Garcia-Hallett, University of Missouri–Kansas City, 5030 Cherry Street, Cherry Hall Room 434,

Kansas City, MO 64110, USA.

Email: GarciaHallettJ@umkc.edu

769741FCXXXX10.1177/1557085118769741Feminist CriminologyGarcia-Hallett

research-article2018

Garcia-Hallett 215

social contexts in understanding female offending, based on the argument that females,

in particular, are influenced by their social relationships (see Gilligan, 1993; Miller,

1986). In fact, Schwartz and Steffensmeier (2017) recently published a theoretical

piece arguing that female offending patterns are shaped by gendered focal concerns

and risk preferences for offending. As they explained, “Gendered focal concerns are

overarching cultural schemas that shape gender ideologies, moral orientations and risk

preferences, individual and collective identities, and femininity and masculinity tem-

plates for action, resulting in differing orientations toward crime across the life course”

(Schwartz & Steffensmeier, 2017, p. 131). Thus, a gendered paradigm of offending

explores the unique aspects of female offending, examines the differences between

female and male offending patterns, and also captures the nuances within female

offending trajectories (see Schwartz & Steffensmeier, 2017; Steffensmeier & Allan,

1996; Steffensmeier et al., 2013). Gendered theories of female offending are enhanced

by psychological theories on the mind and on behaviors. For instance, according to

identity theory (Stryker & Burke, 2000), behaviors in given social circumstances are

tied to one’s salient identity and research demonstrates that maternal identities,

specifically, are often salient identities arising in various situations (see Nuttbrock &

Freudiger, 1991). Thus, research on gender and crime should also consider the

influence of gender roles and identities in offending trajectories (see Kruttschnitt,

2013). Although we might expect parenthood to positively or negatively influence

offending behaviors (Byrne & Trew, 2008; Ferraro & Moe, 2003; Graham & Bowling,

1995; Laub & Sampson, 2003; Monsbakken, Lyngstad, & Skardhamar, 2013),

offenders’ experiences with parenting are shaped by gendered socializations, social

support networks, and the dynamic nature of parenting relationships (see Garcia,

2016; Garcia-Hallett, 2017; McIvor, 2016; Monsbakken et al., 2013; Sharpe, 2015).

In this article, I consider the role of mothering and maternal identities in the study of

gender and crime over the life course. I first describe existing research on females and

their offending patterns. This is followed by a review of the potential influence of gen-

dered socializations as caregivers and the role of maternal responsibilities in females’

pathways into and out of offending. I use qualitative data to show how and when path-

ways into and out of offending are shaped by motherhood. In doing so, my work exam-

ines the interplay of gender, crime, and parenting among women offenders for whom

becoming a mother occurred at varying points along their offending trajectories.

Females and Offending Trajectories

A wide array of existing research finds that female offenders share similar life experi-

ences of victimization, mental illness, and substance use. Female offenders often report

physical, sexual, and psychological abuse in their childhood and adulthood (Gilfus,

1992; Greenfeld & Snell, 1999; Payne, Gainey, & Carey, 2005; Severson, Postmus, &

Berry, 2005). Compared with their male counterparts, female offenders are eight times

more likely to experience sexual abuse, three times more likely to live through emotional

abuse, and about two times more likely to face physical abuse (Payne et al., 2005).

Females’ histories of maltreatment (physical, sexual, and emotional) are associated with