Talking gender, ethnicity race, and change: How mothers scaffold girls' identity meaning‐making during puberty

Editorial reading guide · Independence

What kind of question gives my daughter room to describe what an experience means to her?

This article examines mothers’ support for girls who are making sense of identity during puberty. It gives readers a concrete setting in which to distinguish adult guidance from opportunities for a child to initiate or persist.

Who was studied?

Forty-five Black mother–daughter pairs discussing identity during puberty.

Age / stage: Around age 10

Read with three questions

1. What does the article establish about mothers’ support for girls who are making sense of identity during puberty?
2. Who supplied the account, and where did participants describe a different experience from one another?
3. How closely does the population described here match the family or setting you have in mind? The population to compare is forty-five Black mother–daughter pairs discussing identity during puberty.

Keep the limits in view

The accounts show how the participants understood these experiences. They do not estimate how common those experiences are among other families.