Mothering, Running, and the Renegotiation of Running Identity: Graduate Student Spotlight

Samantha Skinner

doi:10.18778/1733-8077.11.3.03

Authors

Samantha Skinner McMaster University, Canada

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8077.11.3.03

Keywords:

Running, Mothering, Running Identity, Mothering Identity, Leisure, Identity

Abstract

Qualitative interviews with six female runners shed light on the gender gap in women’s participation in shorter versus longer road races. The interviews reveal that “mother guilt” and “time constraints” play a significant role in the development of a running identity among women. While the running community promotes a discourse centered around a “disembodied” runner — someone totally and unconstrainedly dedicated to running — the participants in this study experienced conflicts between their roles as mothers and their identity as runners. The conflicts led them to engage in challenging the dominant discourse by actively negotiating a mothering and running identity. The findings suggest that women are redefining the boundaries around running and subsequently — running subculture itself.

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Author Biography

Samantha Skinner, McMaster University, Canada

Samantha Skinner is currently completing her MA in Sociology at McMaster University, where her focus is on disability and caregiving across the life course. She is currently working on her MA thesis (supported by the Social Science and Humanities Research Council) on caregiving experiences of primary caregivers of adult children with disabilities. Samantha will be starting her PhD in Sociology at Western University Canada come the fall of 2015. There, she will extend upon her current Master’s research and examine more closely how the life course impacts on caring for adult disabled children. Samantha has recently been awarded a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Fellowship for her upcoming doctoral studies.

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