Running head: TEEN PREGNANCY 1

Teen pregnancy
Michelle Mwangi
ENG 102
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The topic and issue is about teen pregnancy the research will be from different articles of experts

and other credible authors stating their claims pertaining to the topic. Teen pregnancy often leads to

socioeconomic insecurities later in adulthood because of the young mother’s lack of higher education, and

sometimes family support. It also causes a low socioeconomic lifestyle depending on the type of

social class the teen parent will be in. A teen who is in a higher socioeconomic class may have it

better because they will have the support from their family, so they can further their education.

As a teen having to take care of a child is not easy because you personally are still a child and

adding more to it is stressful and can lead the young parent into depression. If they do not have a

strong family support emotionally or financially to help them or reassure them that they are not

alone will help the teen stay focused and remind them that they aren’t just doing it for

themselves, but also for their baby. Different experts will have different opinions regarding the

issue.

In the article Fuller discusses the social determinants in which influence teen pregnancy.

This is a very credible source because it explains the different determinates which play a role in

teen pregnancy. “In 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with the

Office of Adolescent Health funded state- and community-based organizations to develop and

implement the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Community-Wide Initiative.” (Fuller, 2016). Fuller

also shows different types of statistics showing how high and low teenage pregnancy are in

Massachusetts and Arkansas. “State teen birth rates ranged from the lowest rate of 10.6 per 1,000

in Massachusetts to the highest rate of 39.5 per 1,000 in Arkansas in 2014” (Fuller, 2016). In his

article, he claims that Hispanics and African Americans have a higher teenage birth rate than

non-Hispanic and white teens. Fuller does a great job in making sure we understand the context
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of the text. This source is very credible because Fuller has a Ph.D in health care making her

article a credible source.

In the article, Carr demonstrates the benefits about the sexual health programs in schools.

“Teen pregnancy in this province increased by almost 40 per cent from 2006 to 2010. The

national teen pregnancy average is 28.2 per 1,000 girls. New Brunswick's is 34.8. In 2010,

teenagers gave birth to 531 babies.” (Carr,2013) That is all more reason why sexual health

programs should be everywhere educating the young on what could possibly happen if they are

not careful as well as the long-term effects it will have on the financially. Despite the fact many

people or parents did not agree with her claims in the article. Her claims in the article were

credible because the author is familiar with the topic and knows what she is talking about.

In the article Suner made a claim which stood out there “Proposes a conceptual

framework based on an ecological model for helping teenagers once they become parents.”

(suner, 2003) This statement provides a comparison of the perception of teen pregnancies in the

past and how it compares today. Suner also elaborates on the changes of social services available

to teen mothers.

In the article Hall discusses the rates between teen pregnancy as well as sexually

transmitted diseases. This relates with the lack of sexual education which is being taught in the

schools. Out of the 50 states only 38 of them had sexually education laws. Most people think that

educating the teens sex about the safe sexual practices promotes the teens in having sex. Making

them think that nothing will happen with the use of a condom. The states that do not have sex

education laws may still have policies regarding sex and/or HIV/STD education. This is a

credible source because For the socio-economic factor of this article the cost of living differences

across the U.S. was adjusted from the median household income and the cost of living index
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from the current year. A key point in the article would be the Medicaid waivers for family

planning. Which is Medicaid-funded access to contraceptives as well as family planning services

has reported a significant decline in unplanned pregnancies in low-income families. Hall is very

educated in the field on teen pregnancy and sexual diseases. Hall exhibits in pointing out the

different aspects from the sexually transmitted diseases to Medicaid-funded contraceptives to the

low-income showing improvement.

Barr’s article discusses how even though teen pregnancy is declining there is much work

to be done. Barr explored how the correlation between teenage motherhood and the later sexual

risks in behavior, meaning the lack of contraceptives use. Which is a high concern because that

will lead to a rapid rise in teen pregnancies. Instead of trying to decline the rates in teen

pregnancy that will just make it sky rocket. “We tested the possibility that social images were

affected not only by personal experience (the birth of a child) but also by the family and

community context in which this experience took place.” (Barr, 2013)

In Bash’s article he converses about the teen pregnancy statistics between the different

races. “In 2006, the birth rate among 15- to 17-year-old non-Hispanic Blacks (36.1 per 1000)

were more than three times as high, and the birth rate among Hispanics (47.9 per 1000) was

more than four times as high as the birth rate among non-Hispanic Whites (11.8 per 1000).”

(Bash, 2011) As you can see the pregnancy rates were higher among non-white’s was higher due

to the fact that there is a lack of sexual education. Another statistic he quoted was “Compared

with women who delay childbearing until age 30, teen mothers' education is estimated to be

approximately 2 years shorter. Teen mothers are 10-12% less likely to complete high school and

have 14-29% lower odds of attending college.” (Bash, 2011) Having a child as a teenager can

alter the course of a young individual life.

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This was an important article because it discussed the economic costs and social

consequences of having a child so young. Teenage parenting has devastating effects on families

and ultimately places a large financial burden on the nation. It is significant because more teens

who have children is more money the nation has to spend on supporting them. They most likely

won’t have family support so they will have to turn to the government. Most likely they will

continue using the governments money because they will get comfortable and not feel the need

to get a job. Since they are being protected by the government with or without family support.

No one really talks about the teen mothers developing depression from all the new

responsibilities they have for the rest of their life’s. “In the 168 teen mothers, mean age 17.6 ±

1.2 years, African American (50%), Latina (31%) or Biracial (13%), the prevalence of

depressive symptoms was 53.6%.” (Cox, 2016) Temporary aid for families with dependent

children TAFDC, prior suicidal gestures were both associated in the decrease of maternal

caretaking ability and social support. Making it hard for the mother to do her job the correct way.

In the article Cox concluded that depression resulted in the young mother’s lack in confidence to

parent and social support. With no one to guide them they will soon start getting frustrated and

have no one to turn to.

Bringing the social determinants of health which are related to teen pregnancy to light

will help expand the prevention of it improving the social and economic aspects of it. “In 2010,

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with the Office of Adolescent

Health funded state- and community-based organizations to develop and implement the Teen

Pregnancy Prevention Community-Wide Initiative.” (Fuller,2016) That approach helped identify

the factors for teen pregnancy as well as sexual health outcomes among the youth. This was a
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relatively credible article because the author has received their Ph.D. and is familiar with the

content they are writing about.

In this article Lee informs us of the social determinates overseas in the United Kingdom.

“Unwanted and under-age pregnancies, whether planned or unplanned, have a high personal,

social and economic cost and can blight the life chances of younger teenagers.” (Lee, 2015)

Many teens who get pregnant young usually end their education 2 years earlier then those who

do not get pregnant. Another main point she discussed was how the mental health of a pregnant

woman could affect the baby. A young mother who is constantly stressed during their pregnancy

can also stress out the baby resulting in complications.

Harden makes it very clear that sex education and sexual health services are not effective

in attempting to lower teenage pregnancy rates. Instead they looked into the social disadvantages

such as poverty, unemployment, and discrimination. During his research he reported that many

young parents said they were unhappier than poverty. Family conflicts and violence in the family

were common factors. Young fathers reported their father as them because they were not suitable

role models. Both the teens also said that having the kid made them have to grow up faster in

order to provide, but most had lack of confidence, self-esteem and high anxiety levels.

In Lindenberg’s article she believed that “Sex education about abstinence and birth

control was associated with healthier sexual behaviors and outcomes as compared with no

instruction.” (Lindenberg, 2012) Many other experts have their own opinion in what ways will

help lower the sky rocketing teenage pregnancy rates. She feels the use of contraceptives and

learning about it during sex education is very beneficial for healthy and safer outcomes.
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A socioeconomic influence for teen childbearing is that they have a higher chance of

underemployment, or low income. Those two factors are so high because teens of a lower

socioeconomic class usually do not have that emotional support that they need so they have to do

everything on their own. Making it harder for them to go out and do what they need to do.

Majority of the underemployment or low-income are in the lower social class category because

they did not get a chance to further the education. They did not have anyone to take care of their

child while they were in school. Most teen parents born into a lower socioeconomic class have it

the hardest because they do not have that support financially. Unlike those who are in a higher

socioeconomic class who usually have that support they need to thrive in the future.

Many women with low education levels were more likely to develop preeclampsia.

“(odds ratio 5.12; 95% confidence interval: 2.20, 11.93) than women with high educational

level.” (Silva, 2008) They suffer from this from various reason like smoking in pregnancy, work

conditions, body mass index and blood pressure. They work so hard, so they can have enough

money for when their child gets here that they never take a break to relax their body. Nor have

the time to eat better throughout their pregnancy. Which can play a factor in their body mass

index and blood pressure levels not only harming them but also their newborn.

In Minnis article she goes in depth in the statistic for childbearing in the Hispanic

community. “Socioeconomic instability and policies limiting access to education influenced

childbearing for immigrant adolescents.” (Minnis, 2012) If they did not limit access to

education they would have something to keep them busy that way they, they wouldn’t have to

worry about the struggles about having to take care of a child and themselves. Evidence

showed that Hispanic and African Americans had children at a younger age compared to White

teens. That is the case because they are limited to socioeconomic opportunities.
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Unintended pregnancies in lower socioeconomic class can usually result in abortion. If

the mother is all alone and struggles making ends meet for herself or even with her family.

Having a child will be a burden on the family and they won’t be able to support the child

financially. So the easiest thing the mother does is to get rid of the baby, only because she knows

she can not afford to provide for the child. Most times the father is not in the picture, because

they feel as if themselves can not handle the responsibilities of taking care of child and are still

immature themselves. That is why sex education is very important. Informing teens of the things

that can come from it could possibly lower the risks. Teen pregnancy rates and abortion rates can

drop significantly.

Those young mothers who have that support financially from their families usually come

from a higher socioeconomic status. If the teen has that support in the future, they will most

likely won’t have a socio-economic insecurity, because they will still have the opportunity to

complete their education and won’t have to work. On top of that they will have the emotional

support they need so they won’t become depressed or feel like they have to do everything on

their own. Unlike the lower socioeconomic class who have to work harder to make ends meet

because they can not be supported by their family financially. They also usually lack the

emotional support resulting them falling into a depression making it harder for them to get things

done. Not having family support can take a big toll.

“The influence of socioeconomic disadvantage experienced during adolescence on the

timing of parenthood and the association between early parenthood and risk for harsh parenting

and emerging child problem behavior was evaluated.” (Scaramella, 2008) This comes from the

young parent not knowing how to raise a child since they are still practically a child themselves.
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This is where family support comes in, because if they have the desired family support to help

them a show them right from wrong it will drop the child problem behavior significantly.

Socio-economic insecurities among young mothers is very relevant. As many have

reported witnessed their friends have to go through the same things the statistics is reporting. It is

not easy witnessing someone your age have to struggle just to make ends meet at a young age.

They should be out chasing their dreams doing what teenagers do. Even though it is hard having

a child so young forces the teen to have to grow up and become mature at a young age, as well as

learning responsibility in order to provide for the child when the baby’s father and family are not

relevant.

Teenage pregnancies are quite more common in the later stages of high school. There

have been many people who have reported their friends who have had children young saying it is

hard and if they could change it they would’ve waited because they now either had to delay their

schooling time if they wished of going to college, or were still able to go because they had a

good family support. That was more prevalent in upper class families because their families

could support and their child financially. But them receiving the child now has taught them the

responsibilities they needed to learn and maturing faster than others.

Those were some brief examples of how teen pregnancy leads to socioeconomic

insecurities later in adulthood, because of the mother’s lack of higher education. As well as the

socio-economic standing of the mother plays a huge role in everything. Being in a higher

socioeconomic class can make a big difference versus being in a lower socioeconomic class.

Many people always see the negative about having a baby so young, but it allows the teen to

grow up and develop responsibility early in life despite the socioeconomic class they are in. They

see how hard everything can be earlier on and can choose to make a difference from it or let it
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get the best of them whether they are doing it alone or with their baby’s father. Another thing is

they are able to keep up with their energetic child since they are young themselves.

References

Aguilar, A. (2013) Socioeconomic Disadvantage as a Social Determinant of Teen Childbearing

in the U.S.

https://doi.org/10.1177/00333549131282S102

Bash, C. (2011) Teen Pregnancy and the Achievement Gap Among Urban Minority Youth

doi: 10.1111/j.1746-1561.2011.00635.x.

Barr, A (2013) Teen motherhood and pregnancy prototypes: the role of social context in

changing African American mothers risk image contraceptive expectations

DOI:10.1007/s10964-013-9912-x

Carr, J. (2013) Kids having kids

Cox, J. (2008) Depression, Parenting Attributes, and Social Support among Adolescent Mothers

Attending a Teen Tot Program

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpag.2008.02.002

Deave, T. (2008) The impact of maternal depression in pregnancy on early child development
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2008.01752.x

Fuller, T (2016) Social determinates and teen pregnancy: Exploring the role of nontraditional

partnerships
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doi: 10.1177/1524839916680797

Lee, K. (2015) Growing better brains? Pregnancy and neuroscience discourses in English social

and welfare policies

doi: [10.1080/13698575.2014.994479]

Hall, D (2011) Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy Rates: Why We Need

Comprehensive Sex Education in the U.S

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0024658

Harden, A. (2009) Teenage pregnancy and social disadvantage: systematic review integrating

controlled trials and qualitative studies

doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.b4254

Kearney, M (2015) Media Influences on Social Outcomes: The Impact of MTV's 16 and

Pregnant on Teen Childbearing

(DOI): 10.3386/w19795

Minnis, A. (2012) Limited Socioeconomic Opportunities and Latina Teen Childbearing: A

Qualitative Study of Family and Structural Factors Affecting Future Expectations

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-012-9653-z

Patel, P (2012) Teen Motherhood and Long-Term Health Consequences

doi: 10.1007/s10995-011-0829-2.
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Scaramella, L. (2008) Consequences of socioeconomic disadvantage across three generations:

Parenting behavior and child externalizing problems.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0013190

Silva, L. (2008) Low socioeconomic status is a risk factor for preeclampsia: the generation R

study

doi: 10.1097/HJH.0b013e328fcc36e

Suner, J. (2008) Kids having kids: Models of intervention

Reiss, D. (2011) The relationship code: Deciphering genetic and social influences on adolescent

development

Rowland, S (2010) Social predictors of repeat adolescent pregnancy and focussed strategies

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2010.02.016

Yardley, E. (2008). Teenage mothers experience of stigma

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2010.02.016

Hollo, R. (2009). Approaching the Adolescent-Headed Family: A Review of Teen Parenting

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cppeds.2009.09.001

Lindenberg, L. (2012). Consequences of Sex Education on Teen and Young Adult Sexual

Behaviors and Outcomes

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2011.12.028
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