From seriality to social group. Motherhood as basis of collective identity and collective action

The controversy about generalized conceptions of gender that disregard differences between women confronted feminist theory with the problem of finding a new way of thinking about women as a social collective. Iris Marion Young suggests to understand women als "serial collectivity" based on the common experience of structural constraints. This notion of women as seriality neither assumes common attributes nor a common identity of all women. It is an empirical question whether and how seriality becomes the basis of a collective gendered identity or collective action. This paper examines the formation of a group of women working in a mother's center. The symbolic boundary object 'motherhood' which is vague enough to allow a multitude of interpretations serves as a focus for a collective identity. In addition, the creation of a community of mothers ist furthered through cooperation in the production of collective goods such as the center's paid job for mothers or the political struggle for social recognition of mothers. However, this community of mothers is a temporary collective that attracts only a small part of the series of all mothers (mainly young housewifes with preschool children). Due to institutionalization as an organisation the collective can survive the ongoing dissolution of the group and attract new members and thus remains a Focus for collective action of mothers as mothers.