TEENAGE PREGNANCY

Teenage Pregnancy



Abstract

Parenthood is something that women and men are expected and encouraged to be a part of, but for most societies, only within the social, economic, and sexual circumstances considered appropriate for those societies. Many view teenage motherhood as inappropriate. Although in reality, the label of teenage pregnancy and motherhood is accurate for any female who is pregnant or becomes a mother before the age of 20, teenage pregnancy is more commonly used to refer to 13-17-year olds—i.e., to girls rather than adults.

Teenage pregnancy and parenthood in developed countries is often seen as a barrier to full participation in society, as well as both a cause and a consequence of social exclusion and disadvantage. Consequently, there are governmental strategies and a plethora of research aimed at determining the cause and limiting the number of teenage pregnancies.

Pregnant teenagers face many of the same obstetrics issues as older women, but there are sometimes additional medical and social concerns for younger mothers, particularly those under 16 and those living in developing countries.

Teenage Pregnancy

Introduction

Also referred to as adolescent pregnancy, teen pregnancy is generally defined as a teen woman conceiving before the age of 20. The bulk of research looking at rates of teen pregnancy examines information from the 20th century forward, and although cross-national comparisons remain difficult to make, national data are often separated between “developed” and “developing” countries. Additional variables included, if available, are race and ethnicity, educational level of the pregnant teen, economic level of the pregnant teen, her living situation (e.g., living with the child's biological father and/or her biological parent or parents), access to sex education and contraception, and access to healthcare and sources of nutrition. Two major concerns stand out in the research: teen pregnancy as a social problem and the health of pregnant adolescents and their children (Daguerre, 2006).

Problem Statement

Teen pregnancy is seen as a social problem, and research has associated it with poorer life outcomes including higher risk of lifetime poverty.

Statistics on Teen Pregnancy

Similar to most issues that emphasize rates, figures, and statistics, data for teen pregnancy rates across the globe are difficult to obtain. Each nation determines which demographic information it collects, not all hospitals maintain records, and many academic studies rely upon self-reported information. Importantly, a distinction exists between the teen pregnancy “rate” and teen pregnancy “births,” since, depending upon the nation in question, end-of-pregnancy rates may be as high as one in two. Pregnancy ends through various means, including abortion (legal or illegal) and miscarriage, physical abuse, lack of nutrition, and unknown biological reasons (Hamilton, 2010).

Reliability of the data proves an additional challenge to researchers who study the impact of adolescent pregnancy and the overall health of teen woman and their children. A glance at the research shows that reports vary greatly, reporting either significant differences or little to no differences in maternal and infant health of women giving birth before age 20 compared to women giving birth after 20.

Regardless of the challenges in calculating teen pregnancy birth rates, researchers have ...