The Mother‐Child Dyad Revisited: Perceptions of Mothers and Children in Twentieth Century Child‐Rearing Manuals

While devoting substantial efforts to studying the impact of the mother‐child dyad on children's growth, development, and social and intellectual achievements, researchers under the umbrella of child development (psychologists, pediatricians, educators) have failed to explore the impact of rearing children on mothers' lives. This article examines child‐rearing manuals in America from 1913 to 1976 viewing the literature as mother‐rearing tracts which have as much to say about the lives of women as about the children for whom they are caring.