Examining how postpartum videoconferencing support sessions can facilitate connections between parents: A poststructural and sociomaterial analysis
Date
2024
Authors
Aston, Megan
Price, Sheri
MacLeod, Anna
Stone, Kathryn
Benoit, Britney
Joy, Phillip
Ollivier, Rachel
Sim, Sarah Meaghan
Etowa, Josephine
Jack, Susan
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Nursing Reports
Abstract
Postpartum support for new parents can normalize experiences, increase confidence, and lead to positive health outcomes. While in-person gatherings may be the preferred choice, not all parents can or want to join parenting groups in person. Online asynchronous chat spaces for parents have increased over the past 10 years, especially during the COVID pandemic, when “online” became the norm. However, synchronous postpartum support groups have not been as accessible. The purpose of our study was to examine how parents experienced postpartum videoconferencing support sessions. Seven one-hour videoconferencing sessions were conducted with 4–8 parents in each group (n = 37). Nineteen parents from these groups then participated in semi-structured interviews. Feminist poststructuralism and sociomaterialism were used to guide the research process and analysis. Parents used their agency to actively think about and interact using visual (camera) and audio (microphone) technologies to navigate socially constructed online discourses. Although videoconferencing fostered supportive connections and parents felt less alone and more confident, the participants also expressed a lack of opportunities for individual conversations. Nurses should be aware of the emerging opportunities that connecting online may present. This study was not registered.
Description
Keywords
postpartum, videoconferencing, online, support, connecting, feminist poststructuralism, sociomaterialism
Citation
Aston, M., Price, S., MacLeod, A., Stone, K., Benoit, B., Joy, P., Ollivier, R., Sim, M., Etowa, J., Jack, S., Marcellus, L., & Iduye, D. (2024). Examining how postpartum videoconferencing support sessions can facilitate connections between parents: A poststructural and sociomaterial analysis. Nursing Reports, 14(1), 99–114. https://doi.org/10.3390/nursrep14010009