‘Motherhood Capital’ and Community-based Tourism Research
‘Breaking the Ice’ in Arctic Fieldwork: How A Toddler Helped His Mother
Juggling motherhood and PhD fieldwork in Arctic Canada.
by Roslyn Kerr & Emma J. Stewart
Taking a Child Into the Field
FOR MANY women there are few situations in which motherhood is an advantage. In western societies, not only have women historically lacked power and influence, but the time-consuming nature of motherhood has made it challenging for women to progress their academic research careers.
Yet in this study of tourism in Arctic Canada, we found that demonstrating motherhood (or motherhood capital) facilitated a closer connection with the local community, which led to the creation of meaningful research for the benefit of the community and the researcher.
At the age of nine months, Emma Stewart made the surprising decision to bring her infant son with her during her fieldwork on community tourism development in Arctic Canada.
While the decision to take a nine month old into remote and unknown communities over the coming year was not taken lightly, there was little option. Emma was still feeding Benjamin — so he needed her as much as she needed him.
Other parent-researchers have noted the initial stress created of going into the field either pregnant or accompanied by a child. This includes
- the extra preparation time required,
- precautions needed in potentially unsafe and unfamiliar environments, and
- the potential for the researcher to be seen as a parent first, and researcher second.
These same researchers, however, have also reported that their children were assets in the field, creating greater access to local communities that viewed the child’s presence very favourably.
Learning Inuit Parenting
WE previously discussed aspects of our fieldwork experience in a book chapter in the ground breaking text Femininities in the Field (Porter & Schänzel, 2018) and in Tourism Geographies (Kerr & Stewart, 2019).
This article is available from free download from the publisher through late April 2021:
Here we share Emma’s field diary to show the influence her infant son had on her experiences (see also Stewart, 2018, p.155):
When my Inuit host unexpectedly regurgitated a mouthful of caribou stew into the obliging mouth of my nine month old son I was momentarily horrified. It was our first evening in an Inuit community and the first of many experiences of doing things ‘Inuit-style’…
At the dinner table that evening, health concerns were at the forefront of my mind, but I tried to remain calm. I took the lead from Benjamin who was not in the least bit phased. To the contrary, he was relishing this new feeding experience.
The half chewed food was the right temperature, the perfect consistency and the salty meat taste was clearly something he was enjoying. It was like watching a mother bird feed her chick…
I knew intuitively that our experiences around the kitchen table that evening were telling: we had been initiated into the Inuit way of doing things, and were on our way to being accepted… Any reservations about bringing Benjamin into the field vanished and I got a sense that he was going to be more of a help then a hindrance: he was going to break the ice. Excuse the pun.
A Miniature Research Assistant
IN TOTAL, Benjamin accompanied his mother on four occasions all before he turned two. For Emma, it did not feel odd or abnormal having Benjamin alongside. Quite the opposite. To her surprise, and delight, she realised very early on that “I had a research assistant in miniature”.
I think folk saw me as just a normal person getting on with life — juggling responsibilities and work… I think it made folk more relaxed knowing that I was just a mum, not just another white southern researcher asking questions. We had something in common. It also gave me a sense of normality. (April 4th, 2006)
The caribou stew incident was just one of many signals. “Benjamin’s physical characteristics were so different to the complexion of my Inuit hosts… Within moments Ben and I were surrounded by new faces; smiling. He is a real hit, a magnet and an icebreaker. (July 24th, 2005)
After realising the stroller Emma had brought with her was a useless form of transport on the largely sand and gravel roads she was taught
“how to pack Ben in my coat… which eventually he seemed to quite like although I was very conscious that he might slip out at any moment” (July 24th, 2005).
Benjamin was also struggling with teething at the time and Emma recalls that she had forgotten to bring his teething ring.
“When quizzed how Inuit deal with a teething child they said a rubbery orange duck’s foot was the answer. One was promptly produced and Ben gnawed happily away.” (July 24th, 2005).
Emma was convinced that access to key people would have been longer in coming if Benjamin was not present. The infant also unknowingly assisted her in difficult field situations, such as observing the arrival of cruise ship passengers or all-important meetings with the Elders:
As I introduced myself I had Ben in my arms… It made for a nice connection; and a sense of me being connected in some way to the people here.” (July 26th, 2005)
The Value of Motherhood
EMMA soon learnt that the ability to adapt to such challenges and come up with solutions — sometimes bizarre ones — was the key!
She was beginning to learn what constituted motherhood capital within this environment, and the power relations between her and her hosts were reversed as she became the learner.
By remaining calm and accepting cultural practices, Emma demonstrated her respect for local ways of parenting. She realised the personal circumstances that initially she feared would be detrimental were actually more of a help than a hindrance.
Perhaps due to the child-centred nature of the mainly Inuit communities, or the shared common ground of parenthood, Benjamin had the effect of breaking down several of the barriers some researchers face when entering communities for the first time.
Tourism Findings
THE RESEARCH itself explored resident attitudes toward Arctic tourism in three northern communities. Residents were asked to reflect on the role tourism has played and continues to play in their communities, and their aspirations for future development.
At the time, Churchill was internationally renowned as one of the best northern Canadian destinations for nature-based tourism activities, including polar bear viewing, beluga whale watching and birding. The largely Inuit community of Cambridge Bay was regarded as a hub for sport hunters, as well as being a key stopping-off point for Northwest Passage cruise travellers. Pond Inlet, another mainly Inuit community, was known principally as a destination for cruise ships.
As might be expected, tourism had the greatest impact on Churchill residents, with considerably less impact on the residents of Cambridge Bay and Pond Inlet. In all three communities, however, tourism was seen as being substantially overseen by outside interests, with Inuit involvement being peripheral. This was especially noticeable in two smaller communities.
Inuit residents were not necessarily opposed to tourism — they generally liked sharing their culture with others. However, they did desire a greater role in its development and economic benefits.
Motherhood Capital in Action
THE FIELDWORK experiences with the Inuit illustrate ‘motherhood capital’ in action. This was demonstrated to all involved through the visible evidence of Emma as a mother holding her child, as well as in her mothering behaviour that was consistent with the community’s understanding of parenting.
Emma’s adaptation to what constitutes motherhood within the Inuit communities also greatly enhanced her motherhood capital. She saw her status change from being seen as an ‘outsider’ to being seen as an equal-status mother. This was especially important in an indigenous community where she would, otherwise, always be seen as ‘other’.
When she later reported her research back to the community, they recognised the authenticity of their voices, which confirmed that she had successfully reached that all-important level of ‘trust’ with them.
Motherhood capital helped her to conduct research ‘with’ rather than ‘on’ communities. By “breaking the ice”, it helped to ensure that community members were informed, active and engaged participants in the research relationship rather than passive recipients.
Emma’s experience also demonstrates how community-based research is both about the community and about the researcher.
The theory of motherhood capital is one example of how researchers can better understand their role in the research process. Just as we may apply social science theories to understand our fieldwork observations, we can also use those same theories to understand ourselves (Harrington 2003).
This Article was Based On:
Roslyn Kerr & Emma J. Stewart (2021) ‘Motherhood capital’ in tourism fieldwork: experiences from Arctic Canada, Tourism Geographies, 23:1–2, 33–52, DOI: 10.1080/14616688.2018.1558455
See the full paper for a comprehensive list of references.
About the Authors
Emma J. Stewart, is a Geographer and Associate Professor of Parks and Tourism at Lincoln University, New Zealand, where she is also Co-Head of Department.
Roslyn Kerr, is Dean of the Faculty of Environment, Society and Design, and Associate Professor in Sociology of Sport, at Lincoln University, New Zealand.
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