Soccer mom: Difference between revisions

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A '''Soccer mom''' or '''soccer moms''' are term sin [[United States]] social, cultural and political discourse used to refer, broadly, to a [[demographic]] and [[psychographic]] group of women with school-age children. A soccer mom is typically imagined as [[upper middle class]], probably [[college]]-[[educated]], most often [[suburb]]an or [[exurb]]an, and typically [[Caucasian race|white]].

{{Use American English|date=May 2023}}

{{Short description|Term for demographic segment}}

{{About|the demographic term|the film|Soccer Mom (film)|the American artist with a similar name|Soccer Mommy}}

'''Soccer mom''' is a term that broadly refers to an [[Americans|American]], [[Canadians|Canadian]], or [[Australians|Australian]], [[middle class|middle-class]], suburban woman who spends a significant amount of her time transporting school-age children to youth sporting events or other activities (whether or not they are [[soccer]] related). It came into widespread use during the [[1996 United States presidential election]] and over time has come to take on an unfavorable connotation.

==Defining the soccer mom==

The term is thought to have been coined a [[Denver, Colorado]] woman running for [[city council]]. When asked for her credentials, she replied: "soccer mom." It came into widespread use in the [[1990s]], notably during the [[U.S. presidential election, 1992|1992]] and [[U.S. presidential election, 1996|1996 presidential campaigns]] and since.

==History==

Literally, soccer moms drive their children to play [[soccer]]. Soccer is considered a safer and more genteel competitive sport than [[American football]], which is more popular than soccer in mainstream [[American culture]]. At once, the soccer mom is associated with encouraging, if perhaps overscheduling, their children with activities, and with making personal sacrifices for their children's benefit (taking them to play), while perhaps remaining somewhat overprotective (by taking them to play soccer rather than, say, football).

[[File:Met Oval snack bar.jpg|thumb|right|A soccer mom and her child at a refreshment stand at the [[w:Metropolitan Oval|Metropolitan Oval]], a soccer complex in [[Queens|Queens, New York]]]]

The phrase "soccer mom" generally refers to a married, American, middle-class woman who lives in the suburbs and has school-age children.<ref name="Carroll & Fox">{{Cite book |editor1-last=Carroll |editor1-first=Susan J. |editor2-last=Fox |editor2-first=Richard L. |title=Gender and Elections: Shaping the Future of American Politics |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2006 |pages=93–94 |isbn=978-0-52-184492-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4Wh7M_vM8foC&pg=PA93 }}</ref> She is sometimes portrayed in the media as busy or overburdened and driving a [[minivan]] or [[SUV]].<ref name="Carroll & Fox" /><ref name="Peskowitz" /> She is also described as putting the interests of her family, and most importantly her children, [[self-denial|ahead of her own]].<ref name="Carroll & Fox" /> The phrase derives from the literal, specific description of a mother who transports and watches her children play soccer.<ref name="Peskowitz">{{Cite book |last=Peskowitz |first=Miriam |title=The Truth Behind the Mommy Wars: Who Decides What Makes a Good Mother? |publisher=Seal Press |year=2005 |pages=24–25 |isbn=978-1-58-005129-3}}</ref> It was also used in names of organizations of mothers who raised money to support their children's soccer teams.<ref name="Peskowitz" />

The first reference to the term "soccer mom" in the [[media of the United States|United States national media]] has been traced to 1982. In that year, the husband of the treasurer of the "Soccer Moms booster club" of [[Ludlow, Massachusetts]], stole $3,150 [[fundraising|raised for the benefit]] of a local soccer league ({{Inflation|US|3150|1982|r=-2|fmt=eq}}).<ref name="Peskowitz" /><ref name="Weisberg">{{cite web |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/1996/10/soccer-mom-nonsense.html |title=Soccer Mom Nonsense |last=Weisberg |first=Jacob |date=October 12, 1996 |work=Slate |access-date=September 8, 2008}}</ref>

The term has found a life as shorthand for a [[stereotype]], or set of stereotypes, far beyond its literal meaning.

Indices of American magazines and newspapers show relatively little usage of the term until 1995,<ref name="Peskowitz"/> when, during an [[political campaign|election]] for [[Denver, Colorado|Denver]] [[city council]], [[Susan B. Casey]] ran with the slogan: "A Soccer Mom for City Council."<ref name="Peskowitz"/><ref name="Macfarquhar"/> Casey, who held a [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] and managed presidential election campaigns, used the slogan as a way of assuring voters they could trust her to be "just like them,"<ref name="Peskowitz"/> denoting herself as "[[everyman|everyneighbor]]."<ref name="Macfarquhar"/> The phrase addressed anxiety about women's achievements, and the stereotype that smart, accomplished women were not able to manage professional careers while showing love for their family.<ref name="Peskowitz" /> Casey won the election with 51 percent of the vote.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=RM&p_theme=rm&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB4E2EDF93E31EF&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Casey, Himmelman Capture Council Seats: Former Teacher, Labor Leader Both Emphasize Children, Education |last=Germer |first=Fawn |date=June 7, 1995 |newspaper=Rocky Mountain News (CO) |access-date=September 7, 2008}}</ref>

Most widely, perhaps, they are associated with [[minivan]] or [[SUV]] use. Active pride in their children may be displayed, for instance, with membership in a [[Parent-Teacher Association]], or with a [[bumper sticker]] boasting that her child is an [[honor student]] at their school.

The term came into widespread use around the time of the [[1996 Republican National Convention]].<ref name="Macfarquhar">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/20/weekinreview/what-s-a-soccer-mom-anyway.html |title=What's a Soccer Mom Anyway? |last=Macfarquhar |first=Neil |date=October 20, 1996 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 6, 2008}}</ref> Its first use in a news article about that election appeared in the July 21, 1996, edition of ''[[The Washington Post]]''.<ref name="Carroll">{{Cite journal |last=Carroll |first=Susan J. |date=March 1999 |title=The disempowerment of the gender gap: soccer moms and the 1996 elections.(Gender and Voting Behavior in the 1996 Presidential Election) |journal=PS: Political Science & Politics |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=7–11|jstor=420743 |doi=10.1017/s1049096500048721}}</ref> [[E. J. Dionne]], the article's author, quoted [[Alex Castellanos]] (at the time a senior [[media advisor]] to [[Bob Dole]]) as suggesting that [[Bill Clinton]] was targeting a voting [[demographic]] whom Castellanos called the "soccer mom". The soccer mom was described in the article as "the overburdened middle income working mother who ferries her kids from soccer practice to scouts to school."<ref>{{Cite news |title=Clinton Swipes the GOP's Lyrics; The Democrat as Liberal Republican |last=Dionne |first=E.J. Jr. |date=July 21, 1996 |newspaper=The Washington Post |page=C1}}</ref> The article suggested that the term "soccer mom" was a creation of [[political consultants]]. Castellanos was later quoted in ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' as saying: "She's the key swing consumer in the marketplace, and the key [[swing voter]] who will decide the election."<ref name="Cornwell">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/bring-on-the-soccer-moms-1350107.html |title=Bring on the soccer moms |last=Cornwell |first=Tim |date=November 1, 1996 |newspaper=The Independent |___location=London |access-date=September 7, 2008}}</ref>

==In politics==

Soccer moms were considered an important constituency in [[Bill Clinton]]'s two presidential wins. Starting, perhaps, with [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] victories in the [[1994]] Congressional elections, and into the [[2000s]] with the presidential victories of [[George W. Bush]], they have been identified increasingly with the Republican party. However, this correlates more with other demographic characteristics, such as their place in the [[red state vs. blue state divide|red state-blue state divide]], than with their identification as soccer moms.

[[Media circus|Media interest]] in soccer moms picked up as the election approached. The number of articles on soccer moms in major newspapers increased from a combined total of 12 for the months of August and September to a total of 198 for October and November.<ref name="Carroll" /> The intense media focus stemmed in large part from the media's belief that soccer moms had become the most sought-after group of swing voters in the 1996 elections. In the end, suburban women favored Clinton by 53 to 39 percent, while suburban men voted for Dole.<ref name="Bennet">{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A06E4DE173FF93AA35757C0A9669C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all|title=Politics In The Burbs; Soccer Mom 2000 |last=Bennet |first=James |date=April 9, 2000 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 7, 2008}}</ref>

In fact, inasmuch as both parties seek to appeal to her, the model soccer mom in political discourse is a [[moderate]], hopefully persuadable [[swing voter]]. She's assumed to be especially concerned with [[education]] policy, [[health care]] and [[tax]] levels, especially as they impact her own family. Since the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]], [[homeland security]] has emerged as a concern to the extent that a new term, "[[security mom]]," has come into use.

During the election, the soccer mom's most frequently mentioned attribute cited in major newspaper articles was that she was a mother or a woman who had children.<ref name="Carroll" /> The soccer mom's next most frequently mentioned characteristics were that "she lives in the suburbs (41.2% of the articles); is a swing voter (30.8%); is busy, harried, [[psychological stress|stressed out]], or overburdened (28.4%); works outside the home (24.6%); drives a minivan (usually a [[Volvo Cars|Volvo]]) [[station wagon]] or sport utility vehicle (20.9%); is middle-class (17.1%); is married (13.7%); and is [[white people|white]] (13.3%)."<ref name="Carroll" />

==Political and social conservatism==

Since the late 1990s and into the [[2000s]], the soccer mom has been increasingly associated with [[political conservatism]], with [[evangelicalism|evangelical]] or [[Fundamentalist Christianity|fundamentalist]] [[Christianity]], and with [[social conservatism|socially conservative]] concerns such as opposition to obscenities in [[rock music|rock]] and [[hip hop music]] and sex and violence in [[film]] and [[television]].

Soccer moms received so much attention during the election that the [[American Dialect Society]] voted ''soccer mom'' [[Word of the Year]] for 1996.<ref name="Worland">{{Cite news |title=Coming to Terms with 1997; Linguists Pick the Words Minted for the Year |last=Worland |first=Gayle |date=January 12, 1998 |newspaper=The Washington Post |page=B1}}</ref> Columnist [[Ellen Goodman]] of ''[[The Boston Globe]]'' called 1996 "the Year of the Soccer Mom."<ref name="Safire">{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C05E2D81231F934A15753C1A960958260 |title=On Language; Soccer Moms |last=Safire |first=William |date=October 27, 1996 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 7, 2008}}</ref> The Associated Press named soccer moms, along with the [[Macarena (song)|Macarena]], [[Bob Dole]], and "[[The Rules|Rules Girls]]" as four phenomena that would be forever associated with the year 1996.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.canoe.ca/InDepth1996/crazyyear.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722030610/http://www.canoe.ca/InDepth1996/crazyyear.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=July 22, 2012 |title=Macarena-ing Down Memory Lane |last=Schwartz |first=Jerry |date=December 30, 1996 |newspaper=Associated Press |access-date=September 7, 2008}} </ref>

These attributions, however, are in no way universal. A political campaign targetting soccer moms in a [[liberal]] environment like [[Boston]] or [[San Francisco]] is probably talking about a much more [[secular]], socially and politically moderate-to-liberal audience.

==In CanadaCriticism==

Soccer moms have been accused of [[helicopter parenting|forcing]] their children to participate in too many [[After-school activity|after-school activities]], [[overparenting]] them in [[concerted cultivation]] rather than letting them [[Slow parenting|enjoy their childhood]].<ref name="Honoré">{{Cite book |title=Under Pressure: Rescuing Our Children From The Culture Of Hyper-Parenting |first=Carl |last=Honoré |publisher=Orion |year=2008 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8oG7pM5p9yYC |isbn=978-0-7528-7531-6}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=September 2018}}<ref name="Hodgkinson">{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/idleparentwhyles0000hodg/page/233 |title=The Idle Parent: Why Less Means More When Raising Kids |first=Tom |last=Hodgkinson |year=2009 |publisher=Hamish Hamilton |isbn=978-0-241-14373-5 |page=[https://archive.org/details/idleparentwhyles0000hodg/page/233 233] }}</ref>

Usage in [[Canada]] is broadly similar to usage in the United States, but it is taken closer to literally, having much to do with active, busy parenting and generally having less to do with race, little if anything to do with religion, little to do with political affiliation except for a tendency to moderation, and with very little correlation to [[social conservatism (Canada)|social conservatism]]. Middle class status, a skew towards minivan or SUV ownership, and to a lesser extent university or college education and suburban or exurban residence are associated with the term. Much of the meaning underlying "soccer mom" has also transferred to the term "[[hockey]] mom".

In 2003, the car manufacturer [[Nissan]], who had for several years courted the "soccer-mom" image, started marketing their [[Nissan Quest|Quest]] minivan as "stylish, sexy and desirable".<ref>"'SOCCER MOM' LOVES ROLE, BUT THE STEREOTYPE STINKS." The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) (September 28, 2003): C1.</ref>

==Related terms==

==={{anchor|Security mom}}Security moms===

During the [[2004 United States Presidential election|2004 presidential campaign]], pundits started talking about the '''security mom''', which was deemed to be a powerful [[voting bloc]]. Security moms were supposed to be concerned primarily with issues such as the [[Iraq War|war in Iraq]], [[Domestic terrorism in the United States|domestic terrorism]], and the security of their children.

There is evidence, however, that security moms did not exist in great enough numbers to influence the 2004 election outcome. [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]]ic women tended to be most interested in [[healthcare]], which Democratic front runner [[John Kerry]] abandoned as a talking point, and may explain Kerry's difficulty in garnering their support.<ref>Klinker, Philip (2004) 'Deflating the "security moms" angle', Newsday, Oct 5, p. A45.</ref><ref>Morin, Richard & Balz, Dan (2004) '"Security mom" bloc proves hard to find: The phenomenon may be a myth', The Washington Post, Oct 1, p. A05.</ref>

===Hockey mom===<!-- [[Hockey mom]] redirects here -->

'''Hockey mom''' is a term widely used in [[Canada]] and [[northern United States]] (including [[Alaska]]), in which mothers often take their children to [[ice hockey|hockey]] rinks.<ref>[http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/canucks/story.html?id=1efb905c-0aac-4e22-9792-5d8a6cf505fc Canada.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160106181823/http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/sports/canucks/story.html?id=1efb905c-0aac-4e22-9792-5d8a6cf505fc |date=January 6, 2016 }} Tony Gallagher, "Smithers should name rink for hockey moms." ''Vancouver Province'', August 28, 2008.</ref> The first article in ''The New York Times'' that used "hockey mom" as a demographic term was a 1999 review of the [[Chevrolet Silverado]], a [[full-size]] [[pickup truck]]. In the article, the truck is described as a "smooth and gutsy" vehicle that "ought to please everyone from hockey mom to cattle hauler".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940CEED61630F933A05756C0A96F958260&scp=2&sq=%22hockey+mom%22&st=nyt|title=BEHIND THE WHEEL/Chevrolet Silverado; The Cover Is Familiar But the Book Is All New |last=COBB |first=JAMES |date=May 30, 1999|newspaper=New York Times|access-date=September 8, 2008}}</ref>

Former Alaska governor [[Sarah Palin]], the US [[Republican Party (USA)|Republican]] vice-presidential candidate in 2008, described herself as a "hockey mom" as far back as her [[Alaska gubernatorial election, 2006|2006 gubernatorial race]].<ref name="Bajaj et al.">{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9504EFD71E3FF93AA35752C1A9609C8B63&st=nyt|title=THE 2006 ELECTIONS: STATE BY STATE; West |last=Bajaj |first=Vikas |date=November 9, 2006 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 7, 2008 |display-authors=etal}}</ref> In her speech at the [[2008 Republican National Convention]] and in [[stump speech (politics)|stump speeches]] following the [[political convention|convention]], she joked that the only difference between a hockey mom and a [[pit bull]] was lipstick,<ref name="Bumiller & Cooper">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/04/us/politics/04repubday.html?scp=1&sq=&st=nyt|title=Palin Assails Critics and Electrifies Party |last1=Bumiller |first1=Elisabeth |last2=Cooper |first2=Michael |date=September 4, 2008 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 8, 2008}}</ref> suggesting that hockey moms are tough.<ref name="Parsons">{{Cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-sep-05-me-parsons5-story.html |title=Hockey moms are tough for a reason |last=Parsons |first=Dana |date=September 5, 2008 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |access-date=September 8, 2008}}</ref> "Hockey partisans" on the Internet claim that hockey moms are "a bit more intense than their soccer counterparts, both in terms of the commitments they make to the sport and the intensity with which they cheer their kids."<ref name="Leibenluft">{{cite web |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2199361/ |title=Hockey Moms vs. Soccer Moms Which is the more important voting demographic? |website=slate.com | last=Leibenluft |first=Jacob |date=September 4, 2008 |access-date=September 8, 2008}}</ref>

==See also==

{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}

*[[NASCAR dad]]

* [[After-school activity]]

*[[South Park Republican|South Park Republicans]]

* [[Angry white man]]

* [[Concerted cultivation]]

* [[Helicopter parent]]

* [[Karen (slang)]]

* [[Kyoiku mama]]

* [[Mama grizzly]]

* [[NASCAR dad]]

* [[Stage mother]]

* [[Tiger mom]]

* [[Will it play in Peoria?]]

* [[Worcester woman]]

{{div col end}}

==References==

{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==

* {{cite book |title=Sourcebook of Family Theory and Research |first1=Yvette V. |last1=Perry |first2=William J. |last2=Doherty |editor-first=Vern L. |editor-last=Bengtson |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cs3Xu53ElcYC&pg=PA255 |chapter=Viewing Time Through the Eyes of Overscheduled Children and their Underconnected Families |pages=255–257 |year=2005 |isbn=0-7619-3066-3 |publisher=SAGE}}

==External linklinks==

{{commonscat|Soccer mom}}

* {{wiktionary-inline|soccer mom}}

* [http://www.donaschwartz.com/soccerMomImages.html "Soccer Mom," Photographs by Dona Schwartz] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202035839/http://www.donaschwartz.com/soccerMomImages.html |date=December 2, 2008 }}

* [https://www.legacygeek.com/soccer-mom-chair/ Soccer Mom Chair]

{{Parenting}}

==External link==

* [http://slate.msn.com/id/2255/ "Soccer Mom Nonsense:The making of this year's election myth"] (By Jacob Weisberg, ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'', October 12, 1996)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soccer Mom}}

[[Category:American culture]]

[[Category:Slang terms for women]]

[[Category:Motherhood]]

[[Category:Family]]

[[Category:American culturephraseology]]

[[Category:Political terminology of the United States]]

[[Category:American political neologisms]]

[[Category:Stereotypes of middle class women]]

[[Category:Stereotypes of suburban people]]

[[Category:Youth soccer in the United States]]

[[Category:Stereotypes of white Americans]]

[[Category:Stereotypes of white women]]

[[Category:1982 neologisms]]

[[Category:Socioeconomic stereotypes]]