Teen Pregnancy Rates Paper

Teen pregnancy has been an issue in the United States for the past couple decades in the 20th and 21st centuries. The rate of teen pregnancy has decreased for the past seven years; however, the number of teen births remain high. Racial/ethnic, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities in teen birth rates persist. In order to continue the decrease in the rate of teen pregnancy in low-income females age 15-19-year-olds, it is essential to understand the problem, its implication, its prevalence, and the factors that contribute to the problem of teen pregnancy.

Over the last few decades the rates in teen pregnancy have been a debate; did they rise over the past few years or did they actually decline? Contrary to some doctors and politicians the numbers associated with teen pregnancy have decline over the last couple of years. Although there are still people out there who believe this to be an issue it’s made more of an issue than it actually is. The ads and commercials are set out to scare teen-agers into believing that were at an all time high for this issue, but realistically its actually the exact opposite. Teen pregnancy rates haven’t dropped on there over the course of the years. There are a few major factors that have contributed a great deal to this change. Those changes include but are not limited to: more resources being available to these teenagers to prevent themselves from becoming pregnant, society is more open to talking about this issue as well as the religion and culture change aspect of families today. Despite the beliefs of others, teen pregnancy rates are at an all time low for the first time in decades.

Teen pregnancy continues to be a problem in America even though the CDC documents a decrease from 2007-2009 in all racial groups. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). Reducing the number of pregnancies in teens 15-17 is a core indicator identified by Healthy People 2020 to assess the status of adolescent health. Children born to teens are at risk for health concerns from being of low birth weight and having poor prenatal care such as delayed development. (Magness, 2012). Repeat pregnancy, dependence on welfare, and poverty are some of the results of adolescent pregnancy. Teen mothers tend to have health problems such as hypertension, and anemia and are at high risk for early delivery. Magness looks at the issue from the teen’s viewpoint and discusses the idea that some teens become pregnant to provide stability in an otherwise chaotic life and can gain maturity from the experience. Emphasis on continuing their education after delivery can prevent repeat pregnancies. Lack of productive or positive social activities or guidance can leave room for a teen to indulge in risky behavior to occupy their time. Peer pressure and influence from present day norms can cause teenagers to give in to early onset of sexual activity (Kirven, 2014). Finding after school or extracurricular activities can promote a healthier self

Teen pregnancy is a growing epidemic in the United States. Teen girls are becoming pregnant at an alarming rate, with a lot of the pregnancies planned. With television shows broadcasting shows such as “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom”, it is giving teenage girls the idea that it is alright to have premarital sex and become pregnant. It is in a way condoning teen pregnancy.

The number of teen pregnancies in Texas by race/ethnicity in 2015 are just as diverse. Teen pregnancy to Non-Hispanic White females was 7,376. Teen pregnancy to Non-Hispanic Black female was 4,619. Teen pregnancy to Hispanic was 22,745. Teen pregnancy to American Indian/Alaska Native was 127 and Asian/Pacific Islander was 267. The rate of teen pregnancies in 2015 by age are girls under 15 was 1 percent, girls 15-17 was 30 percent and girls 18-19 was 69 percent.

Within the inner cities of America, it appears the ages of most parents in the inner cities are becoming younger and younger. With nearly 40% of Black men incarcerated, the women-to-men ratio is unbalanced (Bureau of Prisons, 2012). According to the 2010 Census, Black single mothers with children account for a staggering seventy percent of households within urban cities. These mothers are far more likely than married mothers to be poor, relying on governmental assistance, with no father figure to help raise their children to be upstanding citizens in society. “Even after a post-welfare-reform decline in child poverty, they are also more likely to pass that poverty on to their children” (Hymowitz, 2005).

Birth rates in African American and Hispanic teens are substantially higher than whites, a trend that has persisted for decades. Even though pregnancy rates among teens are at an all time low. It is still a major issue but mostly affecting the urban communities. In this research paper I will be comparing and demonstrating the relationships between teenage pregnancy, social issues, and education.

Poverty stricken women are forced to live in communities with high crime and drug activity, increased unemployment and poor education school system. These adversities affect African American women at larger degrees throughout her lifetime. African American women are more likely to become a teen mother compared to other groups of women (Ukockis, 2016). This will place her at risks for economic hardships and physical, mental and emotional abuse.

A large majority of people believe that teen pregnancy happens mostly in larger communities and urban settings, but teen pregnancy happens all over the country in even the smallest of communities. Families living in poverty, single parent homes, and children with little discipline are often what come to mind when we hear

The healthy people are apart of the foundation for many federal prevention initiatives. I decided to look at the federal teen pregnancy prevention initiative. This initiative provides grant funding to support teen pregnancy prevention approaches and demonstration projects to test innovative strategies. Their goals for this program include reducing the rates of pregnancies and births to youth in the target areas, increasing youth access to evidence-based and evidence-informed programs to prevent teen pregnancy, increasing connections to community-based clinical services, and educating stakeholders about effective strategies to reduce teen pregnancy (healthypeople.gov). There are three government offices that are connected to the teen pregnancy

New Mexico has made significant progress in reducing the rate of teenage pregnancy but the rate remains high among other states in the country. The National Bureau of Economic Research report suggests that the reason for high level of pregnancy rate among American teenagers is an economic context of income inequality. Teenage pregnancy has many social, health and economic consequences that inhibit women from realizing their full potentials. This challenge imposes economic burden on the state in the form of assistance program for single mothers and lost income due to low level skills. For example, in 2010 teenage mothers’ public and health care assistance programs cost the United States government nearly $10 billion including lost income from lower educational attainment and reduce wage among children born to teenage mothers. Studies show that teenage mothers tend to have less education and are poorer than their peers who are not teenage parents. This implies that teenage pregnancy has intergenerational effects that can be seen in the overall development index in the larger

Teenage birth rates, defined as live births per one thousand 15-19-year-old US females, declined by 10% from 2012 to 2013 from 29.4 to 26.5. In fact, the birth rate has been on a steady decline over the past 20 years, from 61.8 in 1991 to 26.5 in 2013. Teenage pregnancy represents both a health and social inequality in our society. Specifically, teenage childbearing is a public health issue because teenage mothers are more likely to experience negative social outcomes such as dropping out of school. This is a self-reinforcing cycle, as children of teenage mothers face higher chances of poor academic achievement as well as getting pregnant or getting someone else pregnant in their teenage years (CDC). Although the overall rates of teenage pregnancy have dropped, ultimately, the variations in the rates reflect the intersecting disparities regarding race and ethnicity, income inequality, geography, and environmental factors, which in turn affect access to medical care, education, and resources.

One major problem in America’s society today is teen pregnancy rates. In fact, “teen sexual activity, pregnancy, and childbearing are associated with substantial social, economic, and health costs” (Sedgwick). However, this problem is not one without a solution. The rise of teen pregnancy rates can be prevented and reversed by providing better access to birth control for teens, eliminating the negative connotation that accompanies abstinence, and implementing more efficient sex education in public schools.

Teen birth rates are higher in the United States than any other country. In 2010, over 600,000 teens were impregnated; however, in following years, the number was reduced by half (Werner, 2014). These statistics show a decline in teen pregnancy; nonetheless, teen births continue to be an unsolved epidemic in the United States. There are no simple solutions to end this epidemic, as there are many contributing factors. For the United States to continue to see a reduction in teen births, Americans must remain vigilant in attacking some of the leading influences.

Like Amy and Loeber (2009), when it comes to the ecological paradigm of teenage pregnancy, Corcoran, Franklin, and Bennett (2000) also believe one’s socioeconomic status is a huge factor that contributes to this problem. A person’s socioeconomic status a lot of times determines “education, expanded family size, single-parent household structure, and lessened resources in terms of employment and income.” These three authors claim that educational performance and goals “dictate the potential costs of child bearing at a young age.” Their studies have also shown that teenage girls’ relationships with the school setting and poorer performance in school serve a greater risk for adolescent pregnancy.