title: Discovering Self: Childbearing Adolescents' Maternal Identity.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Adolescent pregnancy and motherhood have long been a topic of interest for many healthcare professionals. However, there are limited data on how childbearing adolescents incorporate motherhood identity into their sense of self. The purpose of this study was to explore how childbearing adolescents perceive motherhood as becoming part of their personal identity.
  
  
  METHODS
  This qualitative study using ethnographic data collection involved 7 months of observation, interaction, and interviews.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected from nine expectant adolescents during in-depth interviews. All participants were patients at a teen mother and child clinic staffed by certified nurse midwives and a pediatrician.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Narrative content analysis revealed the overall theme of discovering self, with three major themes: confirming the pregnancy, the loss of my body, and imagining my child in my arms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adolescent mothers may need assistance to construct their maternal identity in order to strengthen self-perceptions and improve maternal/child outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Janelle Macintosh is an Assistant Professor, College of Nursing, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT. The author can be reached via e-mail at Janelle-macintosh@byu.edu Lynn Clark Callister is a Professor Emerita, College of Nursing, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT.
authors.forename: Janelle
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Macintosh
authors.forename: Lynn Clark
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Callister
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016389:Maternal-Child Nursing; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence; D012649:Self Concept; D055815:Young Adult