Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifier

1153

Date

2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Major

Sociology

Committee Chair

Jeni Loftus

Committee Member

Carol Rambo

Committee Member

Wesley James

Abstract

Using the voices of nine mothers whose daughters participate in child beauty pageants, I analyzed these mothers' accounts of their participation in an activity widely viewed as deviant using neutralization theory. In this most recent wave of media attention towards child beauty pageants the focus has shifted away from the mothers and toward the pageant industry. By focusing on the mothers' accounts of their participation in child beauty pageants this study shows the ways in which these women think about and justify their participation. Their accounts demonstrated that while these mothers recognized that child beauty pageants are seen as deviant, they typically did not agree. Respondents used verbal accounts to neutralize the deviant label placed on pageants including: denial of injury, condemnation of condemners, appeal to higher loyalties, justification by comparison, and metaphor of the ledger.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to the local University of Memphis Electronic Theses & dissertation (ETD) Repository.

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