The Underlying Causes of Teen Pregnancy

Before successfully preventing teen pregnancies among teenage girls, there are many underlying causes and facts about the dilemma that must be first exposed. Children from homes run by teenage mothers have to face almost insurmountable obstacles in life. The incidents of depression and mental health problems, the lack of father figures, and the high rate of poverty often connected to children in homes run by teenage mothers put them at serious disadvantages when compared to children raised in nuclear families. Many people believe that the implementation of sex education in schools and the addition of more federal aid for single parents are major causes for the country's high rate of teen pregnancies. The true purpose of sex education and federal aid is to help strengthen the mother and her child so that they can eventually lead productive lives.

Although teen pregnancy rates dropped significantly in the USA over the past decade, rates remain higher than in many other developed countries (Ventura et al., 2001; Flanigan, 2001). Almost 900,000 teenage girls still become pregnant each year in the USA and significant racial/ethnic disparities exist (Ventura et al., 2001). Given the adverse economic and health consequences stemming from teen pregnancy, including low birth weight and economic hardship, no one is claiming that the battle is won. Instead, experts are debating what motivated the decreases in sexual activity and increases in the use of contraceptives at first intercourse, and strategizing ways to continue the positive trends. Possible explanations for the good news include economic prosperity, more informed and cautious attitudes about sex, improved use of contraceptives, and funding of new teen pregnancy prevention efforts through welfare reform (Darroch and Singh, 1999; Flanigan, 2001).

Previous research has attributed a girl’s increased risk of pregnancy to the possible consequences of a father leaving such as, lower family income, conflict at home and weak parental monitoring. Yet even when these factors were taken into account, the study found that a father’s absence in itself seemed to put daughters at risk for having children early. Girls’ whose fathers left before they were born or previous to age five were seven to eight times more at risk of becoming pregnant as an adolescent, than girls living with their fath...

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...ally active teens, estimated to be over 60% of teens by age 18, and 80% by age 20 (Alan Guttmacher Institute. 2001), must have access to reproductive health care and contraception. Nationally, publicly funded family planning prevents 385,800 unintended pregnancies among adolescents aged 15 to 19 annually, avoiding 154,700 teenage births and 183,300 abortions (Forrest, J.D., & Samara, R. 1996). Health care providers could adopt policies and procedures that are teen friendly, such as convenient hours and drop-in appointments; and care that is non-judgmental and respectful of teens; care provided by peer providers; and services provided off-site.

Finally, youth development plays a big role in preventing teen pregnancy. There is a widely held belief that one of the most effective pregnancy prevention strategies is to provide youth with supportive environment and a positive sense of the future. Youth development programs are one way to improve life skills and life options for youth who may be likely to become pregnant because they perceive a lack of opportunity. With these three options open for teens, the rate of teen pregnancy would drop effectively.