Abstract
To investigate factors associated with favorable pregnancy attitudes among teenage girls. Participants were sexually active teenage girls aged 15–18 years old (n = 965) who took part in the 2002 or 2006–2010 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG). Multinomial multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the likelihood of being pleased with a teenage pregnancy. Sixteen percent of sexually active teenage girls (n = 164) would be pleased (11 % a little pleased, 5 % very pleased) if they became pregnant. In a multivariable model, participants who had not yet discussed sexual health topics (i.e., how to say no to sexual intercourse or birth control) or had only discussed birth control with a parent were more likely to be very pleased with a teenage pregnancy than participants who had discussed both topics with a parent. Prior pregnancy, racial/ethnic group status, older age, and having parents with a high school education or less also increased the odds of being pleased with a teenage pregnancy. Being pleased with a teenage pregnancy was correlated with a lack of discussion of sexual health topics with parents, prior pregnancy, and sociodemographic factors (having less educated parents, racial/ethnic group status). Pregnancy prevention efforts can be improved by acknowledging the structural and cultural factors that shape teenage pregnancy attitudes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hamilton, B. E., & Ventura, S. J. (2010). Births: Preliminary data for 2009. National vital statistics reports. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.
Hamilton, B. E., & Ventura, S. J. (2007). Births: Preliminary data for 2006. National vital statistics reports. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.
Singh, S., & Darroch, J. E. (2000). Adolescent pregnancy and childbearing: Levels and trends in developed countries. Family Planning Perspectives, 32, 14–23.
Vital signs: Teen pregnancy—United States, 1991–2009. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 60, 414–420.
Kohler, P. K., Manhart, L. E., & Lafferty, W. E. (2008). Abstinence-only and comprehensive sex education and the initiation of sexual activity and teen pregnancy. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42, 344–351.
Mueller, T. E., Gavin, L. E., & Kulkarni, A. (2008). The association between sex education and youth’s engagement in sexual intercourse, age at first intercourse, and birth control use at first sex. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42, 89–96.
Ryan, S., Franzetta, K., Manlove, J., & Holcombe, E. (2007). Adolescents’ discussions about contraception or STDs with partners before first sex. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 39, 149–157.
Robert, A. C., & Sonenstein, F. L. (2010). Adolescents’ reports of communication with their parents about sexually transmitted diseases and birth control: 1988, 1995, and 2002. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46(6), 532–537.
Martinez, G., Abma, J., & Copen, C. (2010). Educating teenagers about sex in the United States. NCHS data brief, no 44. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.
Crosby, R. A., Diclemente, R. J., Wingood, G. M., Davies, S. L., & Harrington, K. (2002). Adolescents’ ambivalence about becoming pregnant predicts infrequent contraceptive use: A prospective analysis of nonpregnant African American females. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 186, 251–252.
Frost, J. J., & Darroch, J. E. (2008). Factors associated with contraceptive choice and inconsistent method use, United States, 2004. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 40, 94–104.
Schwarz, E. B., Lohr, P. A., Gold, M. A., & Gerbert, B. (2007). Prevalence and correlates of ambivalence towards pregnancy among nonpregnant women. Contraception, 75, 305–310.
Kelly, L., Sheeder, J., & Stevens-Simon, C. (2004). Teen home pregnancy test takers: More worried or more wishful? Pediatrics, 113, 581–584.
Jaccard, J., Dodge, T., & Dittus, P. (2003). Do adolescents want to avoid pregnancy? Attitudes toward pregnancy as predictors of pregnancy. Journal of Adolescent Health, 33, 79–83.
Lepkowski, J. M., Mosher, W. D., Davis, K. E., Groves, R. M., & Van Hoewyk, J. (2006). National survey of family growth, cycle 6: Sample design, weighting, imputation, and variance estimation. Vital Health Stat, 142, 1–92.
Shah, B. V., & Bieler, G. S. (2002). The SUDAAN user’s manual, release 7.5.. Research Triangle Park, NC: Research Triangle Institute.
Miller, K. S., Levin, M. L., Whitaker, D. J., & Xu, X. (1998). Patterns of condom use among adolescents: The impact of mother-adolescent communication. American Journal of Public Health, 88(10), 1542–1544.
Hutchinson, M. K., Jemmott, J. B., I. I. I., Jemmott, L. S., Braverman, P., & Fong, G. T. (2003). The role of mother-daughter sexual risk communication in reducing sexual risk behaviors among urban adolescent females: A prospective study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 33, 98–107.
Hutchinson, M. K., & Cooney, T. M. (1998). Patterns of parent-teen sexual risk communication: Implications for intervention. Family Relations, 47, 185–194.
Stevens-Simon, C., Kelly, L., & Kulick, R. (2001). A village would be nice but…: It takes a long-acting contraceptive to prevent repeat adolescent pregnancies. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 21(1), 60–65.
Gallup-Black, A., & Weitzman, B. C. (2004). Teen pregnancy and urban youth: Competing truths, complacency, and perceptions of the problem. Journal of Adolescent Health, 34(5), 366–375.
Rosengard, C., Phipps, M. G., Adler, N. E., et al. (2004). Adolescent pregnancy intentions and pregnancy outcomes: A longitudinal examination. Journal of Adolescent Health, 35(6), 453–461.
Rosengard, C., Pollock, L., Weitzen, S., et al. (2006). Concepts of the advantages and disadvantages of teenage childbearing among pregnant adolescents: A qualitative analysis. Pediatrics, 118(2), 503–510.
Hoffman, S. D., & Maynard, R. A. (2008). Kids having kids: Economic costs and social consequences of teen pregnancy (2nd ed.). Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute Press.
Acknowledgments
Dr. Cavazos-Rehg had full access to all the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. This research was supported by grants UL1 RR024992 and KL2 RR024994 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and NIH Roadmap for Medical Research and by K02 DA021237 from the NIH. This publication was also supported in part by an NIH Career Development Award to Dr. Cavazos-Rehg (NIDA, K01 DA025733). This publication was also supported in part by an NIH Midcareer Investigator Award awarded to Dr. Bierut (K02 DA021237). This publication was also made possible in part by NIDA grant 5 T32 DA07313-09 (Drug Abuse Comorbidity, Prevention & Biostatistics) awarded to Dr. Cottler.
Conflict of Interest
Dr. Bierut is listed as an inventor on a patent (US 20070258898) held by Perlegen Sciences, Inc., covering the use of certain SNPs in determining the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of addiction. Dr. Bierut acted as a consultant for Pfizer, Inc. in 2008. All remaining authors do not have a financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organizations that could be perceived as real or apparent conflict of interest in the context of the subject of this article.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cavazos-Rehg, P.A., Krauss, M.J., Spitznagel, E.L. et al. Characteristics of Sexually Active Teenage Girls Who Would Be Pleased with Becoming Pregnant. Matern Child Health J 17, 470–476 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-012-1020-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-012-1020-0