- Aug 9, 2003
- 13,471
- 2,163
Black Maternal Emotional Stress
"Birth difficulties and infant mortality, which are significantly higher among
black mothers, have been found to be related to black maternal emotional upset.
The constant stress of being black in a racist society, the ongoing struggle
with identity problems, inferiority complexes, double-consciousness, the
stresses brought on by economic problems, marital problems, broken homes (nearly half of black families are headed by females),
teenage motherhood, unwed motherhood, etc., which are highly prevalent in the black community,
create a state of chronic emotional stress in black mothers and this stress affects many of their children in the form of physical, mental,
emotional and behavioral problems...
The struggle for survival of the larger percentage of black mothers
creates an emotional state of mind not conducive to childbearing or rearing.
The economic hardship, regardless of familial support, institutional support
such as welfare agencies are responsible for a large share of black maternal
emotional stress.
The black mother is far more likely to work late in her
pregnancy and is therefore more likely to suffer from fatigue harmful to her
child.
Because she is more likely to receive inadequate financial support from
the father of the child, her family, from social institutions, the black mother
suffers most from adverse emotional stress and strain and physical exhaustion,
thereby reducing the life-chances of her unborn child. The frequent forming and breaking of emotional-romantic attachments,
and/or the continued exploitation or feared exploitation of the black mother by unscrupulous males, add to her emotional problems...
For the maritally abandoned mother, the unwed and teenage
unwed mother (of which black mothers form the largest number), the absence of a supportive, extended family,
the absence or lack of emotional support by the baby's father or others can create a damaging psychological state of mind
which may be physically or behaviorally harmful both before and after birth."
Amos N. Wilson
The Developmental Psychology of The Black Child
"Birth difficulties and infant mortality, which are significantly higher among
black mothers, have been found to be related to black maternal emotional upset.
The constant stress of being black in a racist society, the ongoing struggle
with identity problems, inferiority complexes, double-consciousness, the
stresses brought on by economic problems, marital problems, broken homes (nearly half of black families are headed by females),
teenage motherhood, unwed motherhood, etc., which are highly prevalent in the black community,
create a state of chronic emotional stress in black mothers and this stress affects many of their children in the form of physical, mental,
emotional and behavioral problems...
The struggle for survival of the larger percentage of black mothers
creates an emotional state of mind not conducive to childbearing or rearing.
The economic hardship, regardless of familial support, institutional support
such as welfare agencies are responsible for a large share of black maternal
emotional stress.
The black mother is far more likely to work late in her
pregnancy and is therefore more likely to suffer from fatigue harmful to her
child.
Because she is more likely to receive inadequate financial support from
the father of the child, her family, from social institutions, the black mother
suffers most from adverse emotional stress and strain and physical exhaustion,
thereby reducing the life-chances of her unborn child. The frequent forming and breaking of emotional-romantic attachments,
and/or the continued exploitation or feared exploitation of the black mother by unscrupulous males, add to her emotional problems...
For the maritally abandoned mother, the unwed and teenage
unwed mother (of which black mothers form the largest number), the absence of a supportive, extended family,
the absence or lack of emotional support by the baby's father or others can create a damaging psychological state of mind
which may be physically or behaviorally harmful both before and after birth."
Amos N. Wilson
The Developmental Psychology of The Black Child