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Intergenerational Replication of Teenage Pregnancy and Educational Attainment in Mexico

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Abstract

Mexico ranks among the OECD countries with the highest prevalence of teenage pregnancies, exhibiting a fertility rate of 70.6 births for every 1000 adolescents. Mexican adolescents with a history of pregnancy are twice as likely to lag behind in their studies as those who have not been pregnant. Research on adolescent maternity and its explanatory mechanisms is required as a basis for implementing policies and programs that effectively curb teenage pregnancy-related behaviors, prevent educational gaps, and reduce the intergenerational transmission of poverty. Based on quasi-experimental methodology and a non-recursive structural equation model with instrumental variables, this paper analyzed the intergenerational transmission of teenage pregnancy from mothers to daughters, as well as the relationship between teenage pregnancy and educational attainment. Using data from the 2009 National Survey of Demographic Dynamics in Mexico, our estimated model indicated a unidirectional relationship from teenage pregnancy to educational attainment. An association was observed between teenage pregnancy and an increased probability of a moderate or severe educational gap (≥ 1 year) by 21% ± 5 and a severe educational gap (≥ 2 years) by 33% ± 8. Adolescents whose mothers reported teenage pregnancy at < 15 years of age were approximately 84% more likely to experience teenage pregnancy themselves than other adolescents. Relevant explanatory mechanisms included low socioeconomic status and a low level of education in the household. Mexico needs to formulate, implement, and expand comprehensive and early prevention strategies as well as teenage pregnancy care throughout its most vulnerable regions. Efforts should be made at the individual, family, and community levels; incorporate alliances with teenage networks; actively engage parents, teachers, and health care providers; and reinforce educational initiatives on sexual and reproductive health for adolescents. It would be convenient for the Government to implement public policies that emphasize the results obtained. There is no better instrument than to show the evidence of the gradual deterioration of human capital in Mexico associated with adolescent pregnancy.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the valuable assistance of Michael H. Sumner and Patricia E. Solis in translating this manuscript into English.

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This research did not receive any specific grants from funding agencies in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Health Systems Research, National Institute of Public Health, Universidad No. 655 Colonia Santa María Ahuacatitlán, Cerrada Los Pinos y Caminera, C.P. 62100, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Edson Serván-Mori, Sandra G. Sosa-Rubí & Ileana Heredia-Pi

  2. Center for Evaluation and Surveys Research, National Institute of Public Health, Universidad No. 655 Colonia Santa María Ahuacatitlán, Cerrada Los Pinos y Caminera, C.P. 62100, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Amado D. Quezada-Sánchez

  3. Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Rafael Lozano

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  1. Edson Serván-Mori
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Correspondence to Edson Serván-Mori.

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This analysis was performed using secondary and public databases.

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Memorial dedication: We dedicate this paper to our colleague Dr. Sandra Sosa-Rubi who passed away in March 2021. Dr. Sosa will be remembered as a remarkable health economist, friend, and human being.

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Serván-Mori, E., Quezada-Sánchez, A.D., Sosa-Rubí, S.G. et al. Intergenerational Replication of Teenage Pregnancy and Educational Attainment in Mexico. Arch Sex Behav 51, 4023–4034 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-022-02309-4

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