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Studies in the Maternal is an international, peer-reviewed, scholarly online journal. It aims to provide a forum for contemporary critical debates on the maternal understood as lived experience, social location, political and scientific practice, economic and ethical challenge, a theoretical question, and a structural dimension in human relations, politics and ethics.
Studies in the Maternal is an international, peer-reviewed, scholarly online journal. It aims to provide a forum for contemporary critical debates about motherhood, and the maternal, understood broadly as lived experience, social location, political and scientific practice, economic and ethical challenge, a theoretical question, and a structural dimension in human relations, politics and ethics.
Studies in the Maternal provides an interdisciplinary space to extend and develop maternal scholarship, making visible the many diverse strands of work on motherhood, parenting, reproduction, pregnancy & birth, and childcare across a broad range of disciplinary and practice boundaries. In doing so, it aims to foster dialogue and encourage the exploration of the unique site the maternal occupies at the potent intersection between scientific possibilities, psychosocial practices and cultural representations.
We publish articles, essays and reviews by academics, writers, artists and clinical and cultural practitioners who engage with the maternal from diverse perspectives. We also welcome work that falls outside of the textual tradition, incorporating or encompassing the visual and/or audio.
We are especially interested in work in the areas of:
As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
All articles submitted to Studies in the Maternal are initially assessed by an Editor, who decides whether or not the article is suitable for peer review. Submissions considered suitable for peer review are assigned to two or more independent experts, who assess the article for clarity, validity, and sound methodology.
Studies in the Maternal operates a double-blind peer review process, meaning that authors and reviewers remain anonymous for the review process. The review period is expected to take around six weeks. Reviewers are asked to provide formative feedback, even if an article is not deemed suitable for publication in the journal.
LicencesStudies in the Maternal allows the following licences for submission:
This journal is published by the Open Library of Humanities. Unlike many open-access publishers, the Open Library of Humanities does not charge any author fees. This does not mean that we do not have costs. Instead, our costs are paid by an international library consortium.
If your institution is not currently supporting the platform, we request that you ask your librarian to sign up. The OLH is extremely cost effective and is a not-for-profit charity. However, while we cannot function without financial support and we encourage universities to sign up, institutional commitment is not required to publish with us.
Publication Cycle The journal is published twice yearly. The Autumn issue is an Open Issue which may include contributions pertaining to any topic, and the Spring Issue is a Special Issue organised around a specific theme. Those wishing to submit contributions for consideration for the Open Issue, or ideas for a themed Special Issue should send their work or enquires to the editors, Lisa Baraitser and Sigal Spigel, at mamsie@bbk.ac.uk. SectionsPublic Submissions
Peer Reviewed
Indexed
Anniversary Collection - Intern Contributions
Anniversary Collection - Papers
Anniversary Collection - Position Pieces
Anniversary Collection - Creative Works and Artworks
Queer Milk Special Cluster
Round Table
Visual Art
Interactive Media
Multimedia Work
Position Piece
Editorial
AHRC-funded 'Motherhood in Post-1968 European Literature Network' Workshop Papers
Seduction into Life: Co-responding with Bracha L. Ettinger
Book and Exhibition Reviews
(M)Other Re-spect
Maternal Writing
Theorising the Maternal
Obituary
Visual Work
The Maternal in the work of Chantal Akerman
Creative Writing
In Conversation
Visual Work: Maternal Subjectivities, Care and Labour
Maternal Encounters, Maternal Affect
Troubling Mothers
Visual Essay and Work in Progress
Article