Young Parents and Digital Technologies: Navigating Pathways to Enhance Agency for Vulnerable Mothers

Abstract

Mothering and motherhood can be a very challenging experience in the 21st century, where cultural pressures, on the one hand, and health experts’ regular parenting surveillance, on the other, continue to influence mothering decisions and practices. The socially constructed “good mother” discourses and associated pressures/influences can be amplified for vulnerable mothers who may feel marginalized from or judged by the broader society. This article presents findings from a study that involved interviews with ten young mothers and 12 staff working at a leading family welfare agency supporting young parents in Melbourne, Australia. The study examined how digital technology could promote a sense of agency for vulnerable mothers as well as barriers and enablers of accessing digital knowledge and online parenting support. In addition, the study explored how technology could assist community organizations’ staff in helping their clients better. This paper argues that, overall, digital technologies can positively influence the experience of mothering and can empower vulnerable mothers by increasing their access to various sources of support. Furthermore, our findings suggest that technology can enhance community and family service providers’ practice, opening possibilities for a more supportive relationship with clients by empowering them and increasing agency over their situation.

Keywords:

• Agency
• digital technologies
• motherhood
• surveillance
• vulnerable mothers
• welfare support

Introduction

Almost universally, becoming a parent comes with many new challenges. However, the culture of motherhood is rapidly changing. Unlike in earlier times when women raised children in a closely-knit neighborhood filled with other women in a similar situation, today, in western contexts at least, women often feel pressured to achieve impossible and untenable standards of motherhood, often termed as “intensive mothering” (Budds, 2021; Leahy & Bueskens, 2020; Morgan, 2016). New mothers feel they are constantly under scrutiny, from formal structured policing by health professionals to informal surveillance of friends and family or strangers in public places (Bartlett, 2019; Boyer, 2018; Mannay et al., 2018).

The meaning of surveillance varies depending on the context. Surveillance in this study refers to the observation, monitoring and reporting of various behaviors of mothers to ensure they “do everything right” (Peckover & Aston, 2018). Lupton (2011) argues that the notions of “good” and “bad” mother and maternity discourses, in general, influence public services and healthcare providers’ perceptions and practices. As noted by Andrews and Knaak (2013), contemporary parenthood suffers from increased medicalization, where the constant cultural pressure, judgment and surveillance of the health community impact mothers’ decisions about parenting (for example, breastfeeding as the only acceptable option).

Drawing on Hays (1996) intensive mothering ideology, Castro, Brady, and Cook (2020, p. 3) noted the clash between the “ideal mother” and “ideal worker” in Australian society. They discussed the complexities of childcare, particularly when women are engaged in paid work. The authors pointed that regardless of mothers’ paid work commitments, they are expected to adhere to “ideal mother” ideologies resulting in emotions of stress, shame and guilt. The study emphasized the increased tensions between mothers who are the sole income earners (single mothers), those who do shift work, and mothers with disabilities. In other words, there is a significant link between intersectional inequalities and the experience of motherhood. Similarly, Mannay et al. (2018) argue that class hierarchies impact the experience of mothering. Those who live in poverty or are in other vulnerable positions (e.g., mothers with disabilities, refugees, or migrant women with language barriers) are at risk of experiencing “otherhood”. Research suggests that factors such as poor or inadequate education, financial instability, lack of job opportunities, mental health problems or race and ethnicity can put new mothers and their children in a disadvantaged position and make them particularly at risk of experiencing othering, overt criticism and surveillance (Brady & Brown, 2013; Mannay et al., 2018; Nomaguchi & House, 2013; Sow, Raynault, & De Spiegelaere, 2022).

In the context of research on class, surveillance and mothering, the current research sought to explore whether digital technologies could have the potential to promote agency for vulnerable Australian mothers. Vulnerable mothers in this research are those who are structurally vulnerable due to their young age of motherhood—defined as under 25 years of age (Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, 2015) in addition to vulnerability due to experiences of poverty, mental illness, low socioeconomic status, ethnicity or geographical location (Landy et al., 2009).

In this study, we use digital technologies as a broadly encompassing term capturing not only handheld and/or portable devices such as smartphones and tablets but also smartphone applications (i.e., apps), social media platforms and online discussion forums.

The term agency refers to a process by which women are emancipated from a sense of dependency, empowered to believe in their capability to make decisions and develop a sense of self-worth and social identity when they negotiate and share this capability in relationships with others (Kabeer, 2010).

Studies show that digital technologies can positively influence the experience of motherhood; they can give mothers a sense of independence and more control over their experiences (Dyurich & Marvarene, 2020; Goodwin, Cummins, Behan, & O’Brien, 2016; Schlosser et al., 2017). Dyurich and Marvarene (2020) in their study highlight the value of digital technologies in assisting mothers to manage their maternal mental health better. They explored how mobile phones can be used as a companion for pregnant women to screen and manage prenatal depression. Dyurich and Marvarene (2020) found that pregnant women appreciated apps such as VeedaMom (Daya Veeda LLC, 2022), a mobile application that educates mothers about anxiety and depression symptoms during pregnancy and promotes wellness and agency, were accessible and available at all times. Apps such as these were perceived by mothers to offer support and help to alleviate symptoms when most needed (Dyurich & Marvarene, 2020).

Other studies have also emphasized the usefulness of mobile phone applications in supporting mothers’ mental health, particularly in low-income areas (Donaghy & Harland, 2019; Goodwin et al., 2016; Schlosser et al., 2017). As a result of their ease of use and availability, smartphone apps are excellent platforms to access mental health care services for mothers living in low-income areas, where there is either a lack of available services or under-detected or undertreated stigmatisations of mental health problems (Goodwin et al., 2016; Schlosser et al., 2017).

Lupton (2017) notes that women use social media and digital devices regularly not only to track their pregnancy and their maternal health but also for parenting purposes. Conducted in Australia, Lupton’s study (2017) revealed the positive experiences of new mothers in finding information about parenting by viewing other users’ interactions on social media or online discussion forums. While digital technologies may promote agency, comfort and reassurance for new mothers, Lupton (2017) suggests that feeling responsible for closely monitoring their pregnant bodies and their baby’s growth after birth also increases the risk of self-surveillance normalization. This intimate, regular surveillance is exercised to conform to “good mothering”, to seek out and act on information and to have greater control over their experiences (Lupton, 2017).

This study sought to better understand the role digital technologies play for vulnerable mothers and whether they enhance these mothers’ agency—currently an under-researched area in the studies of digital technologies and parenting. Considering the existing gap in the literature around this target group (Karpman, Gonzalez, Zuckerman, & Adams, 2018; Katz et al., 2017; Sandstrom, Adams, & Pyati, 2019), this study aimed to highlight and prioritize the specific needs and risks relevant to vulnerable young mothers.

The research takes a bottom-up approach by first understanding the needs and challenges vulnerable mothers face when using digital technology before suggesting whether access to digital parenting/maternal knowledge can promote agency and empowerment. The present study also explored the role of digital technologies in assisting community welfare workers working with vulnerable mothers to better manage their relationships with clients.

Background

The ideology of intensive mothering (Hays, 1996) is based on middle-class values. These values have been imposed upon vulnerable (i.e., low-income) mothers who are subsequently blamed for not fitting in this category and targeted with constant surveillance and educational interventions to address their (perceived) poor parenting skills and risks (Budds, 2021; Leahy & Bueskens, 2020; Romagnoli & Wall, 2012). Vulnerable mothers are often subject to stigma and moral judgements as they are seen as incapable of being “good mothers” (Bartlett, 2019; Grant, Mannay, & Marzella, 2018; Mannay, 2015).

While Victoria is experiencing rates well below the national average, recent research shows that teenage parenthood is on the rise in remote and rural Australia, particularly among Indigenous communities (Hoffmann & Vidal, 2018). This might be explained by the complexity of the disadvantage experienced by this group, including health, education and employment (Hoffmann & Vidal, 2018). Still, despite the increasing numbers, experiences and particular needs of the disadvantaged young mothers with little or no family support are under-studied.

At the same time, digital technologies comprise an integral part of everyday life and have revolutionized how we access knowledge and information (Cooner, Beddoe, Ferguson, & Joy, 2020). The Australian Bureau of Statistics (2018) has found that 87% of Australians are Internet users, with people aged 15–17 comprising the group with the highest proportion of internet usage (98%). Consequently, Internet-based technological solutions are more attractive to younger parents than mature parents. Unsurprisingly, young parents already report significant and complex interactions between mobile media use and family settings in cases as diverse as developing social connections with other mothers and sharing information about their pregnancy and their children (Lupton, 2011, 2017).

For new mothers living in a contemporary individualized culture that emphasizes choice, smartphones, self-tracking apps, and digital media sites are more than just a source of information. They can become a source of reassurance and certainty for mothers (Johnson, 2014; Lupton, Pedersen, & Thomas, 2016; Sawalha & Karnowski, 2022; Virani, Duffett-Leger, & Letourneau, 2019).

In the context of pregnancy and motherhood, Virani et al. (2019) point out that smartphone apps, if well-designed, can offer contemporary parents immediate support day or night. This is particularly important in the digital age, where traditional parenting support is less accessible. First-time mothers appreciate the pregnancy tracking apps allowing them to monitor and manage their bodies, connect with their pregnancy and play a role in the ongoing project of motherhood through weight gain charts, fetal movement charts and so forth (Virani et al., 2019). Other studies highlight the usefulness of apps such as the Breastfeeding Solutions app for new mothers in regional areas to improve their access to reliable and evidence-based information (Wheaton, Lenehan, & Amir, 2018). Unlike traditional sources of information, such as books, Johnson (2014) argues that digital technology knowledge and information are pushed to users, meaning that the user does not need to seek out the information but instead is regularly informed anytime, anywhere; so, such devices (i.e., smartphones and social media) create new forms of awareness and responsibilisation.

Johnson (2014) discussed the rise of smartphone apps providing personalized advice to new mothers, such as Bump Tracker (The Knot Inc, 2022), calling it “tidbitisation” (p. 335) of parenting advice. Such apps allow young mothers easy access to tidbits of information about their pregnancy instead of hazing through entire book chapters or websites. While the prominence of these apps presents the risk of self-surveillance normalization (Lupton, 2017), digital media also allows users a sense of self-management and choice. As Johnson (2014) argues, widely accessible smartphone apps have empowered maternal subjects in the 21st century. New mothers are now regarded as “expert patients” empowered by technology and enabled to challenge some traditional or contemporary mothering ideologies and with the increased agency to make their own choice for themselves and their children (Johnson, 2014). However, it is important to note that access to and the benefits of online technological solutions are not equally distributed across all demographic groups (Thomas, Barraket, Wilson, & Cook, 2018).

A recent review of apps available to support single mothers in managing the sharing of care time and financial transactions with ex-partners (Cook, Given, Keam, & Young, 2019) found that rather than aiding women to manage information and interface with government systems, these apps created additional administrative burdens that fell disproportionately on low-income mothers. The authors found that the available apps did not well service low-income women. Contrary to the empowering aims, these apps created an additional administrative burden and, alongside the lack of meaningful outcomes, only replicated and reinforced hierarchies in social, political and technological domains (Cook et al., 2019).

The Australian Digital Inclusion Index (Thomas et al., 2018) highlighted affordability as a critical barrier to the digital inclusion of single parents. The study emphasized that single parents spend 2 per cent of their income on internet connection, compared to 1.17 per cent nationally (Thomas et al., 2018), causing an additional financial disadvantage for these parents. Furthermore, single parents living in social housing or relying on private rentals are more likely to be marginalized in accessing digital media, given that they depend more on their mobile devices and cannot have inexpensive fixed broadband internet (Thomas et al., 2018).

Finally, according to the most recent Australian Digital Inclusion Index study, single parents have less empowering online experiences than other users. The authors reported that this was likely due to single parents’ high engagement with government portals, such as MyGov¹ and Centrelink², which are reported to be unreliable and difficult to navigate (Australian National Audit Office, 2015; Sleep & Tranter, 2017). In addition, disadvantaged mothers may also lack adequate digital literacy to benefit from the internet and digital devices fully.

For the reasons discussed above, there has been an increase in the launch and promotion of parenting assistive technologies due to the recent boom in technological services being socially accepted in our daily lives (Shiomi & Hagita, 2017), such as mobile apps and web resources (Yoong et al., 2015). However, the parenting assistive technology market is still developing. In comparison to the other app categories on Google Play Store, parenting apps comprise only 0.18% of the available apps (Statista, 2022). Those apps focus on general parenting areas such as pregnancy, breastfeeding, co-custody, co-parenting or raising children with special needs. Still, with most apps being generic, their design can reinforce social inequalities by stigmatization and marginalization (Andalibi, 2021). For example, the lack of resources and information about pregnancy loss in pregnancy apps excludes pregnant mothers who do not fit the ‘happy ending’ trajectory. While pregnancy loss is not the focus of this study, arguably, the existing parenting apps may, albeit unintentionally, symbolically annihilate (Andalibi, 2021) vulnerable mothers by ignoring their particular needs, which can further marginalize these parents that do not fit the middle-class white mothers.

Young mothers’ agency in a digital world

Feminist scholars have studied women’s transition into motherhood and discussed how women could be empowered when experiencing this lifestyle change (e.g., Green, 2004; Meyering, 2013; O’Reilly, 2010). However, these studies on motherhood and childrearing have shown interest primarily in studying challenges women face after becoming mothers, particularly the struggles of feminist mothers and how they put their feminist ideals into practice (Meyering, 2013). Such studies explored how feminism can influence motherhood and decisions about who would care for their children and how they should be raised.

O’Reilly (2010), in this regard, criticized the concept of empowerment and, in general, the debate on resisting patriarchal motherhood and argued that even when mothers are given agency, they are given such power and autonomy only for more effective parenting. In other words, in the debate on motherhood empowerment, the focus only shifts to children’s needs and better childrearing, but the mother’s own needs are given no or little attention. O’Reilly (2010), therefore, demands that social change in motherhood studies center on women and mothers. She also criticizes the ‘good mother’ conceptualization and the naturalization of motherhood as it is defined in patriarchal societies; she sees gender essentialism as the root of such a problem and criticizes it on the grounds of women as natural and indispensable carers (O’Reilly, 2010). O’Reilly and other feminist theorists, however, all highlight the patriarchal institution of motherhood. In other words, they oppose the limited and oppressive characterization of motherhood in favor of focusing on mothering.

In this paper, we argue that in the 21st century, in the modern, rapid age of digitalization, theorizations of motherhood and agency should move beyond a patriarchal analysis. We argue that providing mothers agency and autonomy should not solely be about shared parenting and gender debates but should also be extended to discussions about mothers re-gaining social capital, self-management and one’s identity, which digital media could facilitate. Contrary to Johnsons (2014), we argue that mothers are not a homogenous group, and it is wrong to universally assume all millennial mothers have access to digital technology or have the same level of digital literacy. In fact, we argue that instead of generalizing mothers’ experiences as the same or comparable to each other, it is important to include vulnerable young mothers in the theorizations of technological affordances.

This paper does not discuss how vulnerable mothers share parenting in the family sphere or how they challenge the patriarchal status quo. Instead, we explored the specific needs of these mothers and how they can be better supported to meet these needs.

Utilizing O’Reilly’s theory (2010), we suggest digital knowledge and technology can provide agency for vulnerable mothers; it can increase these mothers’ self-confidence and self-esteem and enable them to better access the support they need. Consistent with a feminist critique of motherhood, we recommend that future research focus on the needs and interests of young women with children beyond an exclusive focus on their mothering.

Research design and methods

Empirical data used in this paper draws on a more extensive qualitative study exploring opportunities to enhance welfare service provision to young parents using digital media in Melbourne, Australia. Data collection took place between April and August 2019.

In this article, we used two sets of qualitative data—interviews with 12 staff working in family welfare organizations and interviews with ten young mothers using their services. We interviewed six family support workers who worked directly with the service beneficiaries (i.e., vulnerable young mothers) and six administrative staff, ranging from the CEO to educational and policy managers and IT staff. Interviews with staff were conducted face-to-face at the organization’s premises during work hours.

We also interviewed ten young mothers—current beneficiaries of the welfare programs providing postnatal and early parenting support. Interviewed mothers were between sixteen and twenty-five years old, while their children were up to four years old, with most parents having more than one child.

Parents using this service are often at risk of children being removed from their care by child protection services. This is due to factors such as experiencing family violence, homelessness, and drug and alcohol-related issues. Considering the complex social issues and vulnerabilities experienced by these parents, data collection methods were particularly flexible to best meet their needs. Namely, young mothers were interviewed by a female interviewer with vast experience in interviews with vulnerable groups, including migrant and refugee women and women victims of domestic and family violence.

Interviews with both staff and young mothers were audio-recorded and professionally transcribed. Before data analysis, all interview transcripts were anonymised by removing any personal information that could be tied to the person’s identity. Furthermore, given that the sample included both the staff and their clients, there was a risk that the staff could identify their clients by recognizing elements of their family information disclosed during the interviews. To mitigate this risk, we took extra measures to conceal the family situations of interviewed mothers by altering and/or generalizing their responses to superfluous demographic information such as the number of children they have, the suburb they live in, specific health or other issues experienced that would be known to their case worker. Amending “identifiers that may be changed without destroying the integrity of the report” (Morse & Coulehan, 2015, p. 151) is an approach that has been recommended to protect participants in closed or vulnerable communities. To protect the identities of young mothers interviewed, in this article, we use pseudonyms without any other demographic data, such as their age or the age of their children. All clients interviewed for this study had been clients of the service between six months and three years.

For our analysis, we followed a directed method of content analysis (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005) whereby the interviews were analyzed in the first instance about questions asked during the interviews with young mothers. We then sought to expand upon the emergent findings by adding the staff data and applying existing theories. We then referred back to the data to find new observations to generate new theories and expand on existing ones.

Results and discussion

The findings are organized under three main themes. We first sought to explore how the staff at family service providers use digital technology in providing service to their clients and what their clients think about using digital technologies in family agencies. Next, we examined whether digital technologies could promote a sense of agency for vulnerable mothers. Then, we explored barriers and enablers to accessing or using technology and digital knowledge for clients and workers.

Digital technology used to facilitate communication and enhance mothers’ learning

Interviews with family service providers showed that digital technology is utilized daily for work-related responsibilities. The staff used different devices, including smartphones, laptops, tablets, and stationary computers (i.e., desktops). The study found that the staff use digital technology for numerous reasons, including but not limited to ensuring the safety of their clients (e.g., to contact emergency services if they are in danger), managing emails, staying in touch with the clients, and recording data. We also noted that welfare support workers might use digital media to support clients’ learning. For example, by playing YouTube videos:

Usually, they [parents] quite like to see things visually [such as YouTube videos]. Having things written down is a bit too much for them […]. (Welfare worker)

Or using child development apps to promote educational content to their clients:

I love using child development apps. I think they’re fabulous. I’ve got one app that kind of filters it by the age group and what kind of developmental play activities you can be doing for that child. (Welfare worker)Young mothers often prefer visual information because it is more interactive, in line with suggestions in earlier studies (Johnson, 2014; Virani et al., 2019). Recognizing that young mothers find it challenging to engage with written materials, the staff used technology to provide visual content and, in that way, better support clients’ learning.

Digital devices increased clients’ engagement. For many young mothers in our sample, this mode of communication was more interactive and engaging. As Alexis explained:

It’s just a bit more engaging, to sit next to someone using an app, and interacting with an app, rather than scrolling through a website. So, I think there’s something about the degree of interaction with the app that makes it a bit more engaging […]. (Alexis)

This finding echoes earlier suggestions (e.g., Johnson, 2014; Sawalha & Karnowski, 2022; Virani et al., 2019) that digital technology is more than just about acquiring information. It creates a relationship between the user and technology through interaction. It appears that Alexis enjoys using technology more while sitting next to someone who knows how to access information quickly than having it printed out for her. While Alexis did not directly verbalize this, we observed how low digital literacy prevents vulnerable mothers from using technology effectively and quickly. This affirms Andalibi’s argument (2021) that digital technologies may symbolically annihilate women, in this case, by ignoring vulnerable mothers’ particular needs.

The staff also pointed out that, in most cases, their clients are single parents and have a challenging lifestyle. Therefore, according to the staff, these clients prefer using text-based messages to arrange appointments or exchange information as they are often pressed for time. This was echoed in interviews with the young mothers. They stated that text messages facilitate communication with their caseworkers and preferred this communication channel to face-to-face or phone calls because of their lack of time. Indirect communication (e.g., text-based) gives these vulnerable mothers a sense of privacy and autonomy by allowing them to respond when they can. In other words, text-based communication is preferred because it is less surveillant and more flexible. For example, Shannon explained how her case worker adjusted her communication mode to meet her circumstances:

They try different methods of contact, like texting (mainly) and sometimes calling, leaving a voice message; that kind of stuff is what they normally do because they know that it’s so hard for me to normally pick up the phone straight away. (Shannon)

During the data collection, the interviewer also noted the participants’ preference to arrange interview times via text message, while none replied to the emails, phone calls or voice messages. One interview was conducted while the participating mother was in the playground watching her kids with her phone on speaker. Another interviewee, whose phone was also on speaker, answered the questions while she was cooking. Mothers appropriated hands-free communication afforded by smartphones allowing them to cope with multiple activities simultaneously. We also found that all participating mothers were active social media users. They all used several social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat, as the most commonly used platforms.

In the context of parenting support, participants expressed appreciation for online groups such as Modern Mummy Club, World Society of Girls, Mums, and Mums and Bubs. These groups operated as Facebook groups and presented a significant source of peer support for young mothers. Like Alexis, other mothers also found valuable parenting-related tips in such groups. As Gabby explains below, these groups present an opportunity to seek peer advice in a non-judgmental environment and receive a near-immediate response:

Like when they (kids) stop having bottles; or what age they went from a cot to a bed. Sometimes they post like, ‘oh, my daughter got this rash; what does everybody think it is? (Gabby)

As previously argued by Lupton (2017), for many women—including our participants—social media is used to track their pregnancy and maternal health and get parenting tips. Our findings support earlier suggestions that technology can create opportunities for communication and the exchange of information (Lupton, 2017; Sloan & Tamplin, 2019; Virani et al., 2019). We found that our participants also valued the use of social media and peer support. Alexis appreciated the helpful tips she found in Facebook groups for mothers. In her words:

They [mum’s groups online] have helpful ways how to help with, like getting your children to eat. Starting them on solids and stuff like that and the best remedies other parents have found might work for me […]. (Alexis)

Alexis appreciated learning some parenting tips from other, more experienced mums. She emphasized remedies that work for her, which could imply the right to choose; young mothers are individuals with specific needs, and one parenting remedy might not work for all mothers.

Digital technologies have the potential to promote agency for vulnerable mothers

Our findings support the earlier suggestions (e.g., Virani et al., 2019; Wheaton et al., 2018) that technology, overall, gives a sense of independence to vulnerable mothers and empowers them to find the required parenting information in the privacy of their own homes, especially for questions that they may find shameful to ask from a friend or a medical professional:

When I first became a mum, I didn’t even know how to properly change a nappy and was too scared to ask for anyone’s help. So, I just kind of went on the internet and was like, okay, how do I do this? How do I do that? (Shannon)

As Shannon’s testimony suggests, a quick Google search can assist young inexperienced mothers in getting help without the fear of being judged. Similarly, Karli was concerned about her yet-to-be-born baby and used a general Google search to find out whether her baby was at risk:

About around 22 weeks, when I was pregnant with my daughter, my younger sister got slapped my cheek. If you’re pregnant and you get slapped cheek, there’s a chance that the baby can get it […]- I looked up that and looked at all of the risks and everything. (Karli)

In addition to this, some participants also used apps to track their baby’s development. For example, Sophie said:

It was really useful […] it just tells you what to expect when you’re pregnant, certain milestones, how big your baby is, and what you can do to help yourself […]. (Sophie)

Using digital technology to help herself gave Sophie a sense of independence and confidence. Similarly, another participant described her use of the pregnancy tracker app Ovia Pregnancy & Baby Tracker (Due Date & Growth Calculator, 2022) to check her symptoms and track the progress of her baby week by week. For many young mothers, apps were a source of confidence and a first resort to make sure everything was going well.

When I was pregnant, I’d look at symptoms, if everything was normal. (Ella)

The examples above illustrate what Johnson (2014) considers expert patients, or in other words, maternal subjects empowered by technology. Digital knowledge and online pregnancy trackers seem to have empowered new mothers to take better care of themselves, providing them with an agency of self-management. As shown in the examples above, digital tools afforded young mothers to monitor their bodies and their baby’s progress in the privacy of their own homes. While this does not replace the medical care pregnant women need, digital media enable new mothers to access and share knowledge independently. Arguably, technology has, thus, made pregnancy a smarter experience (Johnson, 2014) and reduced the sense of being watched all the time or judged. However, although these mothers may feel empowered by technology and enjoy not being watched by others, their body is regularly watched and judged by themselves. As Lupton (2017) pointed out, this self-regular, close body monitoring can be problematic as it increases the risk of self-surveillance and conforming to the good mother discourse.

However, our participants’ experiences show they appreciated being part of a virtual group despite their vulnerable status. The asynchronous and sometimes anonymous aspect of online communication has provided a safe environment for these mothers to disclose their feelings and concerns and obtain advice and reassurance promptly. They can still benefit from the shared information without the pressure of participating in online posts. In other words, a sense of inclusion appeared to impact these mothers’ general well-being and self-esteem positively. This was especially true for those who were timid about socializing or were too busy to participate in face-to-face mum groups. This may suggest that social media platforms gave these women an opportunity for invisible interaction (reading the posts but not participating). This is consistent with Lupton’s findings (2017) regarding the positive experiences of new mothers on the online platform. Finding information about parenting by viewing other users’ interactions on social media or online discussion forums gives them comfort and reassurance. In the quote below, Shannon explained her preference for participating in online peer groups to face-to-face mum groups organized by family agencies.

I am too busy; I have kids and also uni […] I use Google general search and mum’s groups for any question I have […] if my daughter has a new medication and the doctor hasn’t really explained what it is, I will ask other mums online or Google it. (Shannon)

Shannon’s experience echoes previous studies (Sloan & Tamplin, 2019), which discussed the risk of isolation and loneliness for vulnerable mothers, particularly throughout their pregnancy. For vulnerable mothers, the risk of social isolation could continue even after having the baby and throughout the experience of motherhood in general. Thus, technology can allow young mothers to socialize virtually when face-to-face socializing is impossible. Shannon also described how in addition to seeking professional advice when her children are ill, she also relies on online resources to affirm her confidence in tackling the situation. This example particularly highlights the importance of mum-to-mum chats, a safe and friendly environment afforded by digital media. In addition to being seen as safer and more comfortable, online support spaces also provided young mothers with help and support available anytime. As illustrated by Ella below, access to online support groups gave her [and other mothers] relief by knowing there is always someone they can turn to for advice and/or opinion.

The Facebook group, Mums and Bubs is where you can just ask any question. Because it could be like one o’clock in the morning, and your kid could be screaming, and you don’t know why. There’s always another mum on Facebook. (Ella)

Another young mother in the sample described how following a YouTuber who shares her parenting day-to-day struggles, including breastfeeding, was an essential source of support for her. She also mentioned reading about pregnancy labor stories in a Facebook mum group and found such stories and experiences helpful for other mothers.

An online peer-support group is an effective medium to support parents (Nieuwboer, Fukkink, & Hermanns, 2013). Due to allowing an asynchronous mode of engagement, these online communities present an important space for connection and building friendships for young mothers. Additionally, as illustrated in the stories of our participants, online support groups were an empowering environment for young mothers providing them with immediate access to relevant advice and the opportunity to contribute by supporting others. The power of this advice-giving and mutual exchange increases the confidence and self-esteem of these young mothers as parents. This mutual exchange enabled by technology is a new aspect of knowledge and skill development that extends beyond the assistance provided by workers and is more directed at the young mother and children. For invisible engagers, mums that access the information but choose not to participate, technology provides them with a sense of inclusion without being monitored or judged.

While welfare support workers in our sample also recognized the benefits of online spaces for informal support between young mothers, some expressed concerns that reliance on online resources might, in fact, further isolate these mothers:

I think, in some circumstances, it could increase isolation because people are less inclined to go out and meet people in the outside world. (Welfare worker)

Other welfare workers expressed concerns regarding the reliability of peer-to-peer advice on online platforms. They suggested that content moderation by family service providers could be one solution. However, given that these online communities are often hosted on an external platform with its own moderation rules and processes (e.g., Facebook), content moderation presents a challenge putting the privacy of welfare workers and young mothers at risk. Still, despite the concerns, support workers highlighted the importance of informal groups facilitated on Facebook or WhatsApp, particularly for marginalized mothers without strong support available otherwise. As illustrated in the quote below, these support groups allow for free or low-cost access to ongoing support.

“[F]rom the last term the group that I ran, the mums in the group, they got along so well that they did create a WhatsApp group chat. That’s how they continue their own group on a Wednesday without staff support. That’s a really big success. Because some of them don’t have credit and things like that. They can’t always call or text. It’s a free thing. (Welfare worker)

As O’Reilly (2010) previously suggested, young mothers in our sample also used digital media to learn about effective parenting and fulfill their need for peer support and friendship. In these online groups, young mothers were able to get parenting advice, but also advice relevant to other aspects of their daily life such as finance management and using government websites (e.g., MyGov and Centrelink). In such a way, digital media provides a safe space for interaction and empowers these young women, particularly in allowing them to (re)build social capital.

Enablers and barriers to accessing digital knowledge

The interviews with the welfare workers regarding how they operate and do things indicated that the fast-paced change and updates in service provider agencies had created fatigue among the staff who cannot keep up with the required training or do not embrace the change.

A staff member from the ICT department expressed his concerns regarding staff who might not see the benefit of using technology. He continued by explaining the issue’s complexity, stating that he is also time-poor in addressing staff problems regarding new technologies and that there are also budget limitations that hamper the number of training sessions they can offer:

I’m aware of change fatigue among staff. It’s a difficult exercise to navigate because whenever you put in a new technology, you must consider how it will be taken in. Even when you organise training, you might not have people turning up and then complaining that they need to learn how to use the system. (ICT staff member)

The interviews with welfare workers also highlighted that most of their clients have issues accessing Wi-Fi and usually do not have enough data. This limits their ability to look things up, even if the resources are available online. While all young mothers in our sample had their own digital devices (such as smartphones, laptops or tablets), they had limited data plans, limiting their ability to access online services. Limited mobile plan allowances were a hurdle even when organizing interviews during this study. For example, during the recruitment stage, one of the interviewed young mothers, Abbey, could not respond to the researcher’s text messages to arrange an interview time because she was running out of money on her mobile plan.

In addition to the affordability of internet plans, low digital literacy was another key hurdle to fully utilizing digital resources by the study’s participants. So, while the availability of low-cost digital devices might have increased the adoption of the devices, the capability to efficiently use these devices should not be assumed. Low digital literacy was another key hurdle in making the most of digital resources. For example, some mothers in our sample pointed out that while family service providers may provide them with links to online resources or apps, they do not necessarily explain how to access them. Clients are left to learn how to access these resources, with many giving up.

Our findings suggest there is a need for additional support for young mothers in terms of developing their digital skills. This would enable them to fully utilize the resources available and contribute to reducing their disadvantage. For example, as illustrated by Alexis in an earlier section of this article, she appreciated navigating online resources together with her case worker. Thus, helping clients use their digital devices in the presence of family welfare workers could assist vulnerable mothers in gaining parenting information and improving their digital skills.

Welfare workers found visual aids vital when supporting their clients to use digital resources. Moreover, they suggested that parenting apps adopt more visual content, such as videos and images showing a step-by-step guide to the pregnancy process. This might be particularly useful for clients with intellectual disabilities, making content more accessible. For example:

I’d love to have an app that kind of starts from - okay, you’re pregnant, your one week pregnant, you need to go - this is what - like a step by step, this is what you do. You need to go to the doctor. You need to get a blood test. You need to organise an ultrasound. […]. Like a real step-by-step kind of thing, but mostly if it could be a really simplistic text and a lot of videos. Just because we have so many parents that have intellectual disabilities and visual is best […] (Welfare worker)

Another suggestion to better enable the use of parenting apps by vulnerable young mothers was to make content more relatable to their specific circumstances. This could be achieved by introducing content that provides advice relating to various situations experienced by parents in similar life situations. For example, in the quote below, Chloe suggests tailoring content to specific age groups of children.

Maybe an app where you put in your child’s age, and it gives you information specifically on their age, months, and they’re grouped in what they should be developmentally. (Chloe)

As discussed previously, mothers in our sample experience numerous disadvantages, including affordability, low digital literacy, and busy life schedules due to the lack of social support. Designing digital resources that are easily accessible, relatable, and tailored to the specific needs of this demographic would enable a higher rate of adoption of these resources. As noted by welfare workers, digital resources need to be crafted to minimize the potential for clients with a history of trauma to be re-traumatised by using such resources.

Limitations and strengths

As an exploratory study, our sample only included one welfare organization providing support services to vulnerable mothers. Our sample included 12 staff members, including those working in client-facing and support roles, and ten vulnerable young mothers who were recipients of their services at the time study took place. We acknowledge potential bias in recruiting research participants, as those most favorable toward the services may have been most inclined to participate. While this may limit the broader transferability of the findings presented here, it provides crucial evidence to better understand the context of vulnerable young mothers and their needs when considering using digital technologies to provide better service to these women. We hope this study will inspire further research to better understand the needs of vulnerable young parents in other contexts.

Conclusions

This study examined how digital technologies facilitate agency for vulnerable young mothers. Our findings revealed several ways digital media can provide agency for young mothers. This was particularly concerning control over their environment, with mothers preferring text communications from welfare workers so that they could respond at a time that best suited them. Furthermore, the increased agency was provided by varied forms of digital media and, in particular, the visual delivery of parenting information. Vulnerable mothers, often navigating multiple responsibilities and time-poor, seemed to appreciate and enhance their learning by watching videos while they could complete other tasks as well. Still, young mothers are not a homogenous group, and the development and utilization of digital media to provide parenting advice should account for the specific needs of vulnerable young mothers. This article argues that digital technologies can provide agency to vulnerable mothers and increase their sense of independence if designed, deployed and used correctly. Still, this argument does not deny the risks of increasing self-surveillance and body monitoring in a digital world (Lupton et al., 2016).

This article provides evidence about the concerns and requirements to consider when designing a technological solution to support welfare service delivery to vulnerable young mothers. To increase their confidence, it is worthwhile considering the development of mobile apps that would support young mothers’ agency and social capital. While online parenting groups benefited mothers in our sample, there are also some limitations of such groups regarding the reliability of advice provided in these groups (Cook et al., 2019). Additionally, there are concerns over privacy and confidentiality for parents and welfare workers in cases third-party platforms become central to service delivery (e.g., Facebook groups).

This study paves the way for designing a comprehensive, practical and impactful technological solution by summarizing the needs of the targeted groups—the welfare support workers and their clients (vulnerable mothers). Specifically, we suggest developing a) a one-stop-shop for parenting web resources, b) trauma-informed animated videos that may depict child-care practices, c) an online peer support group for mothers/parents, and d) suitable apps to support vulnerable young women to provide increased agency.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Farnaz Zirakbash

Dr Farnaz Zirakbash is a sociology lecturer and researcher at the Swinburne University of Technology. Her research interests include the impact of migration, particularly on Iranian women, and issues of domestic and family violence. She has a PhD in sociology and has conducted research using qualitative methods. Farnaz has extensive teaching experience on topics such as gender, power and state, and primary prevention in family violence.

Milovan Savic

Dr Milovan Savic is a Research Fellow at the Swinburne University of Technology. He studies the impact of digital and social media on interpersonal communication, social connection, and community-based programs with a focus on data literacies and digital inclusion. His research interests include digital citizenship, privacy, digital cultures, data literacies, and AI governance.

Kay Cook

Professor Kay Cook is an Associate Dean of Research in the School of Social Sciences, Media, Film and Education at the Swinburne University of Technology. Her research focuses on the impact of social policies such as welfare-to-work, child support and childcare policies on relationships between individuals, families and the state. Her work aims to provide tangible evidence for policymakers to promote humanistic reform.

Notes

1 Australian Government online self-service portal

2 Government service which provides financial support to Australians facing financial hardship.