Can The Ideal Mother Really Exist?

Some parents may question if they are doing the right things or being “good” parents.  This question can sometimes be more difficult for working parents.  The debate between “The Ideal Mother Vs. The Ideal Worker” can be very real in some people’s eyes.  Tania Lombrozo, a psychology professor at the University of California, Berkeley, aims to not “necessarily answer that question, but to change the questions we are asking!”

According to Lombrozo, one main question that is often times asked of working mothers in academia is, “Is it possible to be a good academic and also a good mother?”  For other mothers, they may wonder “Whether they are doing right by their kids and their careers, whether and how they could do less or do more or do better.”  In this article, Lombrozo, states an important fact; “what’s right for one woman, given her priorities and her circumstances, may not be right for another” and she further explains that women are much more than “workers and mothers.”

In my opinion, the clear message in this article is that we should try to overcome the fictitious “ideal mother or the ideal worker.” What is most important for us to look at is our roles, our duties, and our situations- and then make our life decisions based on that; and not someone else’s viewpoint of what deems us a good worker or a good mother.