Imagining a future: expectant parents’ hopes and dreams for their unborn children

Imagining a Future: Expectant parent’s

hopes and dreams for their unborn children

Dr Paula Pereda

December 2012

Association of Social Anthropology of Aotearoa/New Zealand (ASAANZ) 2012 Annual Conference

Aims of this presentation

• In this presentation I will:– Present the strategy used in the data analysis– Explain what are hopes, dreams and expectations and

why are they important for study?– Present part of the analysis and preliminary findings

• Broader intentions:– Further analysis using demographic and descriptive

variables from GUPINZ– Set a methodology for analysis of large qualitative data

sets

I Method: Data analysis using DC, CA and CS

• Data: Parents were asked antenatally: “Please give us one or two sentences about the hopes,

dreams, and expectations you have for your baby.”• Responses entered verbatim.• Blended approach (data based analysis + interdisciplinary

theoretical perspectives)• Entire data set read• Word and text frequency using NVIVO • Relevant theories on hopes were selected• Codes - informed by

- Discourse Analysis (totality, tensions/contradictions, process, praxis)

- Content Analysis (conceptual and relational)- Cognitive Semantics (encyclopaedic and

representational)

Hopes, Dreams and Expectations word frequency tag cloud

able achieving activity baby become best better born boys career caring

child childhood choices chooses citizen close community confident contribute cultures

daughter dreams education enjoy environment expectation

experiences family feel financially find finish follow friends fulfilling full future girls giving

god good grows happy health

healthy helps home hope independently intelligent involvement job kids kinds knows learns life lifestyle look

loving member morals needs nice normally opportunities parents people

person place positive possibly potential provide relationship respect rights safe school secure sense smart society son sports strongly successful support time

university upbringing values want well well-educated world New Zealand

: Evil (Pandora Box): Faith, Virtue: Disposition/Utopia : Survival mechanism: Goals, Expectations, Optimism: Coping mechanism: Access to social opportunities: Substantive Democracy: Empowerment (educated hope)

: Assessed probability: Self-efficacy, motivation: Needs, wants: Behaviour based on rewards

What are hopes, dreams and expectations? Why are they important?

:Unconscious wishes:Memory consolidation:Brain function:Wish fulfilment

MythologyReligionPhilosophyPsychiatryPsychologyHealthcareSociologyPolitical ScienceEducation

Hopes(s)

PsychoanalysisCognitive scienceBiologyPhilosophy

Dreams

ExpectationsEconomyPsychologyOrganizational StudiesManagement

What are hopes, dreams and expectations? Why are they important?

Future Uncertainty Possibilities

Imagination Emotion Confidence

“Reality holds within itself the anticipation of a possible future” Daniel & Moylan

“The present is pregnant with the future” Leibniz

“The past is a source of knowledge”, the future is a source of hope” Stephen Ambrose

“We need to control the present in order to be able to shape the future”P. Bourdieu

Present FuturePastHopes,

dreams and expectations

III Method: Data analysis using DC, CA and CS

Codes developed on the bases of:• Frequent words analysed in context (within text and

discourse)• Interdiscoursivity, intertextuality and intratextuality

approaches • Identification of Nodal Points, master signifiers, empty

signifiers and floating signifiers

IV Method: Domains, themes and coding structure

Domains Themes Codes

Health and WellbeingHealth

HealthIllness/DiseasesBodyMental healthMother-Child

Psychological and Cognitive Development

Personality traits

Characteristics

Open to experienceConscientiousnessExtraversionAgreeablenessNeuroticismSports/Hobbies/InterestsValues/VirtuesQualities/Abilities/Skills

EducationEducation

Professions/Careers

EducationTraditional professions/university degreeOther professions/career (Diploma/Trade cert/Technical, Security/defence, Arts, Religion, Politics)

Family & Whanau Kinship, family and family members

Culture and IdentityCultureEthnicity/NationalityReligion

Societal context, Neighbourhood and Environment

Social Environment Geographical Environment Economic capital (wealth)Community Environment

Non Domain Analytical themes

• Overarching Signifiershappiness, hope, good, grow, well, safe, love, opportunities, best, better, enjoy, dream, expectations, possibilities, access, wish, chances

• Temporal dimensiongrow, life, future, become, time, childhood, upbringing, develop, day, older, young, path, age, year, month, past, progress, present

• Un-wishful Hopes Negative anticipatory emotion

Hopes, dreams and expectations

Hea

lth a

nd Wel

lbei

ng

Psych

olog

ical

and C

ognit

ive

Dev

elop

men

t

Educa

tion

Fam

ily &

Whan

au

Culture

and Id

entity

Socie

tal c

onte

xt, n

eighbou

rhoo

d, envi

ronm

enta

l

Text Health and Wellbeing


Education

Family & Whanau

Culture and Identity

Societal context, neighbourhood, environmental

Text frequency analysis classification

Hopes, dreams and expectations Domains

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Hopes, dreams and expectationsparticipants multiple responses

All Mother Partner

Part

icip

an

ts

Health and Wellbeing

Health

Illness/Diseases

Body

Mental health Mother-Child

• Health – as a totality

• Illness/diseases - be affected by, inherit some, cope with…

• Body - normal physical appearance

• Mental health - depression, anxiety, stress

• Mother and Child - pregnancy, birth (premature) and delivery

Health Illness/Diseases

Body Mental health Mother-Child0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Health and Wellbeingparticipants multiple responses

All Mother Partner

Part

icip

an

ts



Personality traits

Characteristics

Extraversion

Open to experience

Neuroticism

Agreeableness

Conscientiousness

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Personality Traits

Text

Characteristics

Sports/Hobbies/Interests

Qualities/Abilities/Skills

Values/Virtues



Extraversion

Openness to experience

Neuroticism

Agreeableness

Conscientiousness

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Personality Traitsparticipants multiple responses

Partner Mother All

Participants

Qualities/Abilities/Skills Values/Virtues Sports/Hobbies/Interests0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Characteristicsparticipants multiple responses

All Mother Partner

Par

tici

pan

ts

• Succeed, achiever, goal oriented, with ambitions, focussed

• Compassionate, loving, caring, friendly, considerate

• Adjusted, confident, assertive, self esteem

• Open, creative, imaginative, inquisitive

• Social, passionate, outgoing, optimistic

• Active, smart, fun, skilled, beautiful, talented

• Honest, respectful, with values and morals, trusting, humble

• Sporty, outdoorsy, with interests (i.e. musical, artistic, nature)

Education

Education

Education Professions/Careers0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

EducationParticipant multiple responses

All Mother Partner

Par

tici

pan

ts

Traditional professions Other professions/careers0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Professions/CareersParticipant multiple responses

All Mother PartnerP

arti

cip

ants

• Education

• School, university, college

• Jobs, employment, professional

• Learning, study, teach

• Academic, qualification, degree, diploma

• Graduate

• Doctor, lawyer, social worker,

engineer, businessman, dentist,

astronaut, nurse, scientist, surgeon

• Farmer, musician, police, prime

minister, pastor missionary, pilot,

singer, trade, mechanic, politician,

soldier, ambassador army

Family & Whanau

able achieve activities baby become best better born boys brother career

caring child children chooses church citizen close community confident contribute

cultures dad daughter dreams education enjoy environment

expect experiences family father feel financially find follow friends

fulfilling future giving god good great grows

happy health healthy helping home

hope independent interests involved job kids kind knows learns life lifestyle look loving member morals mothers mum needs nice opportunities

parents people person positive possibly provide relationship

respect safe school secure sense siblings sister society son sports stay strongly

successful support time travel upbringing values want well well-

educated well-rounded world New Zealand


Culture Ethnicity/Nationality Religion0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Culture and IdentityParticipants multiple responses

All Mother Partner

Part

icip

an

ts

Culture

• Culture, multiculturalism

• Travel, international,

• Language

• Beliefs

• Tradition

Ethnicity and Nationality

New Zealand, Māori, India, England,

Philippine, Samoa, China, Croatia,

European, Africa, Auckland,

Russian, Tongan, Uk, Australia,

America, Ireland, Japan, Korea,

Religion

• God, Lord, Jesus Christ, Allah

• Church

• Christian

• Faith, faithful

• Religious, religion

• Pray

• Spirit

• Muslim, Catholic

• Pastor, Missionary


0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

All Mother Partner

Part

icip

ants

Societal Context, Neighbourhood and EnvironmentParticipants Multiples responses

Geographical Environment

World, place, country neighbourhood,

surrounding, outdoors, area, house,

unit, rural, beach, global, public, sea,

city, water, air, land, garden, urban,

zoning

Community Environment

Environment, community society,

home, clubs, citizenship Social Environment

Humans, humanity, people, friendships

Economic Capital (wealth)

Provide, financially, money afford, wealth, rich income, roof, class (upper, middle,

lower) assets, economically, materially insure, poor poverty, well-paid, affluent

Un-wishful Hopes

able achieve active alcohol allblack anything away baby bad become best

better birth born boy bullying career caring child childhood children choose come

community confident crime cultures decisions disabilities dreams drugs

education enjoy environment expect family fearing feel financially

find finish free friends future give god good grows

happy hard health healthy help home

hope involved job keep kids knows learn life look love

mistakes needs nice opportunities parents people person place possible

problems provide respect right safe school society son sports stay stress

strong struggle study successful support think time trouble values violence

want well world worrying wrong New Zealand

Final Remarks

• Methodological challenges of large qualitative data sets

• Ground and operationalize elusive concepts such as hopes, dreams and expectations

• Introduce hopes and un-wishful hopes as categories of analysis

• Analysis and preliminary findings

• Broader intentions:Further analysis using demographic and

descriptive variables from GUPINZPolicy development applicability

The End

Thank you for attending to this presentation

Imagining a future: expectant parents’ hopes and dreams for their unborn children

Education

Transcript of Imagining a future: expectant parents’ hopes and dreams for their unborn children