The triple shift : the experiences of young mothers in tertiary or adult education

Abstract

Women who are mothers are somewhat more likely than others to experience difficulty in balancing work and family. This is more so for mothers who want to further their education. This research explores the experiences of young mothers, between the ages of 25 and 30, who are in tertiary or adult education. Research questions addressed what motivated the mothers to start studying, the difficulties and challenges they faced, how motherhood ideologies affected them, the support they sought and whether this was readily available to them or not. Data was gathered through the use of semi-structured interviews and was analaysed by following the steps of thematic analysis. Semi-structured interviews helped to reveal rich descriptive data on the personal experience of participants. Participants included six mothers who besides studying, were also working a full-time job. Participants reported that being a mother was extremely important to their identity. However, their experience with combining three shifts, work, family and study, caused them to face severe pressure and several struggles. Findings indicated that participants were motivated by various factors to further their studies, mainly the desire for self-development and personal achievement. This research offers insight into the coping strategies that young student mothers follow to successfully manage the shift of being a mother, a student and working full-time. In detailing these practices, this research offers various recommendations that might be considered for future research.