Pregnancy is a natural condition that usually brings joy, positively changing people’s lives. While pregnancy is seen as a welcomed transition to motherhood for many women, unplanned pregnancies can be traumatic. For teens especially, an unplanned pregnancy is not harmless. Analysis by (Medoff, 2010) shows that 90% of teens become pregnant yearly unintentionally and half of these pregnancies result in a live birth (p. 1). Also about 750,000 teenagers become pregnant at least ounce before turning 20 (Dorlisa & shandler, 2011). Research indicates that the United States is the country with the highest rates of teen births when compared with other developed countries (Cavazos-Rehg et al., 2013). Early childbearing worldwide is a social crisis …show more content…
Women were not focused on educational achievement; they will get married and start their own families early in life. However, in the 21st century educational opportunities became available; women strived to begin their careers before they have children. Despite educational opportunities to women, pregnancy rate was still high among young girls and according to Medoff, (2010) “Teen pregnancy is one of the most important social problems in the United States” (p. 177). Women are very happy to be pregnant, but it is totally different when a teenager becomes pregnant. Adolescents tend to get involved in sexual activities at the early ages. To illustrate, one of my co-worker who is 34 years old now, claims that she was smart enough to have sexual inter-course at age 15, just because she wanted to experience sex. Adolescents are prone to be engaged in risky sexual behaviors because they are not educated about the post-traumatic stress related to that. It is due to the developmental changes, the bodily changes of sexual maturation and the formation of sexual identity during adolescence stage (Schwarz, 2010). During the adolescent year, young people dealing with stress, such as puberty, hormonal changes, social acceptance simultaneously. Young adolescents with poor coping strategies may not be able to overcome these situations. Consequently, an unplanned pregnancy jeopardizes teen’s social wellness by …show more content…
In 2009, more than 400,000 of children from teen births were in foster care (Lieberman, 2014). Teens mother are more likely to experience financial hardship and have to struggle to provide financial support for their children (Lieberman, 2014). According to Dorlisa and Shandler (2011) “Teenage pregnancy and childbearing are social concerns because of economic and social cost” (p. 241). In United States, on average every teen mom age 17 and under costs taxpayers $4,080 yearly (Dorlisa and Shandler, 2011). Also, majority of teen mothers are under-paid; they earn $6,500 yearly making them dependent on public assistance (Dorlisa & Shandler, 2011). Pregnancy brings more financial troubles for teenagers; the cost of caring for a baby is extremely high. They are obligated to rely on their parents for financial support. Teenage pregnancy negatively impacts family and society. There is a strong correlation between teenage pregnancy and high school drop- out rates (Gyan, 2014). The relationship between education and early childbearing goes in both directions; pregnant teenagers are most likely to drop-out school, young girls who drop-out school are more prone to become pregnant (Gyan, 2013). Teenage pregnancy is a big concern for parents. Most teen mothers fail to earn a high school diploma; their educational achievement is very poor. Early parenthood is the leading cause of
According to Lawton, “abstinence means not having sexual intercourse (vaginal, anal or oral intercourse) at any time” (25).This answer is a sure way to improve the rate of teen pregnancy. Those that take the pledge to become abstinent usually use this form of contraception until they get married. It has proven to have the highest effectiveness. Unlike condoms and birth control pills abstinence is 100 percent guaranteed prevention. Birth control pills have a very high effective rate. However, if a woman forgets to take one her chances of becoming pregnant, become greater...
As everyone knows, teen pregnancy rate is increasing more and more each day and someone needs to do something to try and either stop it or decrease it dramatically. Teen pregnancy is causing dramatic population increase and that’s just common sense. Teens getting pregnant at such a young age is also causing poverty levels to go up more and more. Mississippi Spent over $100 million on teen pregnancy alone in the year 2010 (“Teen Pregnancy”). Just think of what it is now. More teens are dropping out of school and not finishing their education. According to the authors of this article, “approximately 30 percent of teen mothers have mothers who dropped out of high school, 40 percent have mothers who are mothers who dropped out of high school, 40 percent have mothers who are high school graduates, and 30 percent have mothers who attended college”(Kearny et al 143). Many people don’t realize that there are many effects of teen pregnancy including higher risk of birth defect, more likely to drop out, and also abortion rates increase.
According to www.cdc.gov, in 2013, a total of two hundred and seventy-three thousand, one hundred and five babies were born to women fifteen to nineteen years of age. Though this is low for the typical rate of teen- child births, the U.S. teen pregnancy rate is substantially higher than in other western industrialized nations. There are many stories of teen mothers who feel like they have their lives together, and consider their stories “success stories”. What most teens don’t understand, is the difficulties of being a mother, especially at such a young age. Teen pregnancy has more negative outcomes than positive outcomes, as shown by a girl named Haley in her teen pregnancy story. The best way to prevent teen pregnancy is through information
The past two decades have shown a decline in adolescent pregnancy but today, the United States continues to hold the number one position for highest adolescent pregnancy rates among developed countries.1 Research has found that about two in every five teenage girls become pregnant before the age of twenty years old.2 The recurrence of early childhood bearing now reaches up to 900,000 pregnancies each year in the United States.1 The various factors associated with high prevalence of teenage motherhood can be seen among communities affected by low socioeconomic status, a lack of education, and more interestingly, a new found correlation between the history of intergenerational, teenage childhood bearing with the family.2 Communities facing these problems continue to sustain such high statistical values for teenage pregnancy and have created a vicious cycle which is then adopted by following generations. Adolescent pregnancy not only creates a toll on the family, but also has adverse health effects on the child and society.
Teen pregnancy continues to be an issue. Although teen pregnancy has been cut nearly in half in the last 25 years, it still continues to be a huge economic and public policy issue. “U.S. teen birth rates remain disproportionately high compared with other developed countries” (“Study Examines”), as many studies observed. But it’s clear that public awareness of the issue, its causes and its effects, along with outreach programs to instruct teens on the risks and dangers of teen pregnancy and unsafe sex can have dramatic effects on the issue and lead to massive reductions in the problem. Continuing on this path and increasing public knowledge on these issues is a surefire way to continue to decrease the number of girls who become pregnant before they become adults, and continue to secure greater economic access to women in the future.
Every year, the average amount of dollars spent on teen pregnancy is about $11 billion in tax dollars. The majority of the cost goes to foster care and health care access due to the decreased incomes in teen pregnancy households. Many aspects of the adolescent mother’s life can be altered such as socially, educationally and economically (Lachance, Burrus, & Scott, 2012). Not only the mother’s life is affected but also the newborn’s life is also affected. This paper will dive into the risk factors of teen pr...
The birth rate among teens in the United States has declined 9% from 2009 to 2010, a historic low among all racial and ethnic groups, with the least being born in 2010; and in 2011 the number of babies born to adolescents aged 15-19 years of age was 329,797 (“Birth Rates for U.S.”, 2012). Although the decline in unwanted and unplanned teen births is on the rise the United States continues to be among the highest of industrialized countries facing this problem. This is a prevailing social concern because of the health risks to these young mothers as well as their babies. Teens at higher risk of becoming pregnant are raised at or below the poverty level by single parents; live in environments that cause high levels of stress (i.e., divorce, sexual psychological and physical abuse); are influenced by peers or family members that are sexually active; and lack parental guidance that would direct them to be responsible and self-controlled.
Teen pregnancy in our society has started to become a normal occurrence. It has been stated that “[t]een pregnancy is rated at 11% of all cases of childbirth in the world. Statistics show that 3 in 10 American girls will get pregnant at least once before the age of 20” ("11 Facts About Teen Pregnancy"). Babies born from teen
Informing the adolescents of abstinence-only does not educate them of the risks associated with sexual behavior. Providing our adolescents of a more precise sex education program, that includes curriculum on contraceptive, STDs, better communication skills, risky sexual behavior, abstinence, the outcome of teen pregnancy, and include activities that focus on career goals, could reduce the rate of teen pregnancies and protect our adolescents’ health.
Did you know that 3 in 10 teen girls in the United States will get pregnant at least once before they turn 20 years old? (“Teen Pregnancy”). Or that most teenagers want to be pregnant before they are 20 years old. In 2009 approximately 410,00 teens aged 15-19 gave birth in the United States and the teen birth rate remains higher than other developing countries (“Pazol”). The most shocking news to many teens having kids is that childbearing cost the United States about 9 billion annually and that the national teen birth rate was 39.1 birth per 1,000 and 37% decrease from 61.8 per 1,000 lowest in all records (“Pazol”). Many Teen moms do not carry on their education after they have the baby. Also the media has portrayed teen pregnancy to look like an enjoyable experience in a young girl’s life. 8 out of 10 fathers with leave their baby and the mother once they found out about having a baby or when the baby comes. Teenage Pregnancy changes people’s lives in several ways but also has a negative effect on many teenagers’ body images. In addition helping teens get back on track with their goals and there future’s is very significant for the strong women they are about to become.
Over the last decade, there has been an increase of teen pregnancy all over the world! Many more young teens from the ages of 13-19 are having kids out of marriage and way before they graduate high school. This has been a worldwide problem over the years. A show has even been created to show all the struggles that young teens go through by having a kid at a young age. Most teenagers don’t know the real problems and conflicts that will occur when getting pregnant at a young age. They are not financially stable or mentally stable to raise a child, and that’s where the real problems start. Many teenagers suffer long-term consequences of teen pregnancy. This worldwide problem can be improved with 3 steps: Education about sex, parenthood, and STD’s. Community help, and a peer mediation program.
The female teen stares into the eyes of her newborn son, not realizing the type of life her and her son will have in the near future. Katrina L. Burchett excellently explicates teenage pregnancy among female adolescents living with domestic problems in her book titled Choices. The various elements that aid to the wide range of teenage pregnancies in the world should all be taken in to consideration. Getting pregnant at an adult is no longer substantial or conventional in our society. Everyday, female young adults are getting pregnant, which is why it is a social issue for the youth today.
About one million girls in the world get pregnant each year (“Statistics on Teen Pregnancy”). Teenage pregnancy categorizes teenage girls under the age of 20. Adolescents do not realize how this may impact their schooling, their relationships, and their futures. Many teenage girls become pregnant because they are uneducated of the consequences
Tsai and Wong (2003) acknowledged many risks factors, which is a contributor to teen pregnancy. The influence involves numerous sexual partners, drug abuse, unprotected sex, use of or lack of contraceptives, poor attendance, school performance, and lack of family support, etc. Teen pregnancy is a main issue in every health care system, and affects a young girl’s ...
The concept of comprehensive social intervention has been defined as the process of identifying social problems in an attempt to eradicate them. In looking at the broad range of social characteristics and the behavior associated with teen pregnancy, it is obvious that the emphases placed on the effort to recognize and alleviate teen pregnancy can be celebrated through the effectiveness of education, family planning, and abstinence. However, the attempt to analyze and deal with the cause-and-effect relationship with teen pregnancy is an attempt in understanding the social world itself. In 2006, statistics show that there was a significant increase in teen pregnancy after a decade long decrease. The potential for understanding this increase motivates us to look beyond simple explanations for cause-and-effect behavior and to look at what interactions may be occurring between variables that result in specific behaviors or social conditions. What is it that influences behavior? In looking at teen pregnancy in the realm of the family, it is evident that a large number of family structures have evolved, or perhaps devolved, into a variety of combinations which challenge responsible parents to consistently expose their children to the role models and the types of behaviors that are important for their children to emulate as they mature. People are molded by circumstances and experiences, all of which can positively or negatively influence our behavior.