Abstract
Although many discussions have been held on the timing of weaning from various perspectives such as dietetics,
dentistry, and psychology, the views of mothers have been neglected. To explore the internal experiences of mothers
related to weaning, I interviewed 23 Japanese mothers. Ideas that influenced weaning decisions were classified into
four categories, based on the standpoint from which maternal references were made: 1) maternal personal standpoint
(physical pain with lactation etc.), 2) children's health management standpoint (nutritional management, etc.), 3) social
convention standpoint (critical views of neighbors toward lactation, etc.), and 4) children's standpoint (psychological
meaning of sucking for children, etc.). Mothers who weaned early (when children were 18 months old or younger)
referred to nutritional reasons and seldom reported weaning conflicts. In contrast, most of the mothers who attempted
weaning later (when children were 19 months old or older), or who continued lactation, reported conflicts between the
children's standpoint and other standpoints. The mothers who continued lactation seemed to cope with the conflicts by
reaching mutual understandings about weaning with their children.
