Resilience and young motherhood: The contribution of self-efficacy and locus of control on resilience in young South African mothers

Abstract

Young motherhood is a crucial time for the establishment of resilience. The majority of research underpins the adversities young mothers face. Other research reveals that young mothers also benefit from their young childbearing, which indicates to resilience. The mixed-methods research examines the influence of self-efficacy and locus of control on resilience for 30 mothers aged 18 to 25 years in Soweto, Johannesburg. It also investigates what this means for their mental health. The mothers filled out questionnaires which measured self-efficacy, locus of control, resilience and mental health. Five in-depth-interviews clarify more to their personal stories of motherhood. The purpose was to determine how these constructs relate to having a baby. Although the results did reveal a high occurrence of these constructs, there is no significance found in the contribution of self-efficacy and locus of control on resilience. There is also no significance found in the contribution of resilience on mental health.