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Full text release has been delayed at the author's request until September 01, 2026

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“The Expectation – That Was What Made My Depression So Bad”: A Communicative Approach to Examining Identity Tensions in Mothers Who Experienced Postpartum Depression

Weikle, Kelly M
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0032-6428
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1651485443916594

Abstract Details

2022, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, Communication Studies (Communication).
In this dissertation, I explore the experience of postpartum depression from a communicative identity standpoint. I use the Communication Theory of Identity (CTI; Hecht et al., 2005) to explore and discuss identity frames and gaps in women who experienced postpartum depression and present dominant and alternate discourses about motherhood evident in those identity frames and gaps. I conducted my research through an interpretive framework, where I used phronetic iterative analysis (Tracy, 2020) in interviewing 16 women who had experienced postpartum depression. In Chapter 1, I discuss postpartum depression, including the risk factors and outcomes associated with postpartum depression and my personal experience with the illness. In Chapter 2, I provide my rationale for the study, where I discuss the socially constructed concept of motherhood, identity challenges women face during postpartum depression, the intergroup communication framework, and the Communication Theory of Identity. Then, I present my research questions. In Chapter 3, I provide an overview of the methodology I used to address my research questions. In Chapters 4 and 5, I present my findings. Chapter 4 centers on the experience of postpartum depression, identity layers and gaps framed in CTI, and how postpartum depression is lasting within identity. Chapter 5 centers on dominate and alternate discourses circulating in women’s experiences of identity. In Chapter 6, I present my implications, including implications for the Communication Theory of Identity, theoretical implications for mothering and postpartum depression research, and practical implications. Additionally, I share my study limitations and provide suggestions for future research. Finally, in the Afterward, I share more about my personal experience.
Angela M. Hosek (Advisor)
Risa Whitson (Committee Member)
China Billotte Verhoff (Committee Member)
Laura Black (Committee Member)
246 p.
Communication; Families and Family Life; Mental Health
Communication Theory of Identity; postpartum depression; motherhood; identity; intergroup communication; identity gaps; family communication

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Weikle, K. M. (2022). “The Expectation – That Was What Made My Depression So Bad”: A Communicative Approach to Examining Identity Tensions in Mothers Who Experienced Postpartum Depression [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1651485443916594

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Weikle, Kelly. “The Expectation – That Was What Made My Depression So Bad”: A Communicative Approach to Examining Identity Tensions in Mothers Who Experienced Postpartum Depression. 2022. Ohio University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1651485443916594.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Weikle, Kelly. "“The Expectation – That Was What Made My Depression So Bad”: A Communicative Approach to Examining Identity Tensions in Mothers Who Experienced Postpartum Depression." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University, 2022. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1651485443916594

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ohiou1651485443916594
© 2022, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Ohio University and OhioLINK.