Becoming respectable: low-income young mothers, consumption and the pursuit of value

Abstract

Teenage mothers find themselves caught between two discourses: the irresponsibility of youth and the responsibility of motherhood. We unravel some of the complexities surrounding the performance of socially approved ‘good mothering’, from a social position of restricted resources. We demonstrate the relevance of Skeggs’ notion of respectability in order to forge a deeper understanding of how young, low-income new mothers seek to secure social value and legitimacy via the marketplace. We identify a number of consumption strategies centred around identification and dis-identification, yet we recognise that young mothers’ careful marshalling of resources, in relation to consumption, risks being misread and could leave young women open to further scrutiny and negative evaluation, ultimately limiting their opportunity to secure a legitimate maternal identity.