A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging

© 2015 Springer Science+Business Media New York Introduction Various forms of social media are used by many mothers to maintain social ties and manage the stress associated with their parenting roles and responsibilities. ‘Mommy blogging’ as a specific type of social media usage is a common and grow...

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Main Authors: Pettigrew, Simone, Archer, C., Harrigan, P.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2015
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/35166
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author Pettigrew, Simone
Archer, C.
Harrigan, P.
author_facet Pettigrew, Simone
Archer, C.
Harrigan, P.
author_sort Pettigrew, Simone
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description © 2015 Springer Science+Business Media New York Introduction Various forms of social media are used by many mothers to maintain social ties and manage the stress associated with their parenting roles and responsibilities. ‘Mommy blogging’ as a specific type of social media usage is a common and growing phenomenon, but little is known about mothers’ blogging-related experiences and how these may contribute to their wellbeing. This exploratory study investigated the blogging-related motivations and goals of Australian mothers. Methods An online survey was emailed to members of an Australian online parenting community. The survey included open-ended questions that invited respondents to discuss their motivations and goals for blogging. A thematic analysis using a grounded approach was used to analyze the qualitative data obtained from 235 mothers. Results Five primary motivations for blogging were identified: developing connections with others, experiencing heightened levels of mental stimulation, achieving self-validation, contributing to the welfare of others, and extending skills and abilities. Discussion These motivations are discussed in terms of their various properties and dimensions to illustrate how these mothers appear to use blogging to enhance their psychological wellbeing.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-351662017-09-13T15:32:02Z A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging Pettigrew, Simone Archer, C. Harrigan, P. © 2015 Springer Science+Business Media New York Introduction Various forms of social media are used by many mothers to maintain social ties and manage the stress associated with their parenting roles and responsibilities. ‘Mommy blogging’ as a specific type of social media usage is a common and growing phenomenon, but little is known about mothers’ blogging-related experiences and how these may contribute to their wellbeing. This exploratory study investigated the blogging-related motivations and goals of Australian mothers. Methods An online survey was emailed to members of an Australian online parenting community. The survey included open-ended questions that invited respondents to discuss their motivations and goals for blogging. A thematic analysis using a grounded approach was used to analyze the qualitative data obtained from 235 mothers. Results Five primary motivations for blogging were identified: developing connections with others, experiencing heightened levels of mental stimulation, achieving self-validation, contributing to the welfare of others, and extending skills and abilities. Discussion These motivations are discussed in terms of their various properties and dimensions to illustrate how these mothers appear to use blogging to enhance their psychological wellbeing. 2015 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/35166 10.1007/s10995-015-1887-7 restricted
spellingShingle Pettigrew, Simone
Archer, C.
Harrigan, P.
A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title_full A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title_fullStr A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title_full_unstemmed A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title_short A Thematic Analysis of Mothers’ Motivations for Blogging
title_sort thematic analysis of mothers’ motivations for blogging
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/35166