Research

In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court repealed the landmark case of Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Among other states, Texas outlawed abortion, including pills, at any stage of pregnancy with narrow exceptions. I conducted in-depth interviews with 32 undergraduate students (including 18 women, 13 men, and 1 nonbinary participant) from a large, public university in Texas in early 2023, shortly following Dobbs, which meant some students had engaged in sexual activity before and after the statewide ban. I analyze the ways that students discuss their sexual choices in the immediate aftermath of Dobbs, focusing on how they decide: (1) whether or not to have sex, (2) with whom to have sex, and (3) contraceptive choices. Results indicate that many students claimed to adjust how they followed dominant hookup scripts in the wake of the abortion ban, including reportedly increased abstinence, avoidance of sex with cismen, preference for partners with similar abortion views, and increased condom use. Students' reactions to the ban highlight how gender, sexuality, race, and political beliefs about abortion influence the ways in which students interpret and negotiate sexual scripts.

In June 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned the landmark case of Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, leaving abortion access up to individual states. Among others, Texas shut down all legal access to procedural abortion and abortion pills, posing dire risks to young adults engaging in sexual activity. Using grounded theory techniques to analyze qualitative data from in-depth interviews with 32 undergraduate students from a large public university in Texas, this article documents the emotional consequences of the abortion ban among a population that is known for their high rates of sexual activity, both casually in hookups and within relationships. This study focuses on the gendered ways college students emotionally react to the statewide ban on abortion. Results indicate that many women report experiencing the loss of reproductive rights as an emotional burden, sparking their fear, anxiety, and stress. This study details how students' reactions to the abortion ban are shaped by gendered health inequalities and perceived roles in reproduction.

The expected trajectory of parent-child relationships—parents investing in children for decades before eventually requiring their support—can take different shape when children's adult independence is constrained. Integrating the intergenerational stake hypothesis with the concept of generational maturity, this study explored one such case: how mothers of adult children with disabilities and other conditions requiring extensive care experienced and/or anticipated the later stages of their parenting journey. A thematic frame approach organized analyses of interview data from 72 mothers of adult children (82% whose children had serious conditions, mean age = 57). Mothers expressed grave concerns about their future deaths, focusing on who would care for their children, and tried to cope with their anxiety and guilt by concretely planning for their deaths and their children's futures. Some worried that their children might die first, including what their own lives would look like absent this closely identified maternal role.

The challenges of being a mother in the United States can be great and are often only heightened for women raising children with disabilities. Interviews with mothers not only confirmed this reality, but also revealed ways that such mothers grow, adapt, find joy, and demonstrate resilience on their long journeys of raising their children over many decades.