Solo motherhood and social media: a study on Instagram as a virtual sharing space and support network

• Grant number: 23/07971-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2023
• End date: August 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Human Development Psychology
• Principal Investigator: Thassia Souza Emidio
• Grantee: Gabriela Borsato Scaliante
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências e Letras (FCL-ASSIS). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Assis. Assis , SP, Brazil

Abstract

From the emergence and popularization of social media, it is noted in women a search for maternal references in virtual spaces. These allow the transmission of information in real time, the production of content, as well as interactions between users, making us think about the new arrangements and spaces that social media provide for the exercise of motherhood. This research aims to reflect on and understand how social media can contribute as a space for sharing experiences and a support network for women who experience solo motherhood. We will seek to understand how they experience loneliness, demands, overloads, and how the virtual support network resonates in solo motherhood. This is a qualitative, exploratory-descriptive research, which will use a semi-directed interview as instrument for data gathering. The research group will be formed by 8 women between 20 and 45 years old, who are single mothers and use the social network Instagram. Data analysis, consequently, will be an articulation between the data acquired on the interviews and the studies carried out on the subject. The data will be analyzed from the articulation between the interviewees' speech about their experiences, their support network and the way they experience this through social media, as well as the studies carried out on the subject. We hope that this research can contribute to discussions about motherhood and about social media and their resonance in current experiences.