Paper short abstract:

This paper considers how ideas of motherhood shape women's views and actions when their children exhibit disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and how women express the human value of their child at a moment when society expects "perfect" children capable of able-bodied contribution.

Paper long abstract:

In the context of the superaged society, mothers are seen as responsible for producing and raising children to insure the future of the nation. Mothers are generally expected to take complete responsibility for their child's physical and social developmental processes, and children are expected to become adults who make a respectable contribution to the society. This paper considers how mothers of children with disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) view their role and take actions to insure the happiness and healthy development of their child. When a child exhibits signs of a developmental disability (hattatsu shōgai in Japanese), mothers are generally the first to notice. Yet many mothers struggle to find appropriate support for themselves and for their child. This paper considers how ideas of motherhood shape women's views and actions to advocate for their child, and how women express the human value of their child at a moment when society expects "perfect" children (see Landsman 2009) capable of able-bodied contribution. The paper further argues that mothers are often torn between (a) wanting their child to achieve the same developmental aims of "normal" children and (b) concern that pushing their child to achieve these aims will result in the emergence of "secondary disabilities" such as depression and low-self esteem. It also finds that, over time, mothers learn to appreciate the strengths of their child in terms of the child's particular character strengths, ability for growth, and unique - often ASD-related - perspective in ways that may challenge social expectations of motherhood and socially accepted interpretations of human value.