Introduction
Teenage pregnancy is often referred to as process of a teenage girl i.e. (between the ages of thirteen and nineteen years) becoming pregnant. Concerns about teenage pregnancies rising have been raised by various groups and even government officials in the United States of America. Teenage pregnancy has been a point of contention as the gender issues have been brought to the fore since the early century; there has been a competition on the need for liberation of the female gender including the reduction of teenage pregnancy among our youth. Since then it has been challenging to live as a female in the United States of America due to such constraints that continue to hinder young ladies.
The growth of a woman is daunting especially during adolescence, sexuality and their perceived physical looks can be misleading (Guttmacher 98). These effects are more pronounced in young girls. Teenage pregnancies have been on the increase, this affects young girls and their families. The burden of being a pre-mature mother affects female gender more that the male gender. Unwanted pregnancies stigma among the young girls affects their social, psychological and physiological development. This state of affairs contributes to the overall negative attitude of the ladies towards the male gender. This is developed in line with the feeling of opportunistic and irresponsible aspects of the male gender. With more of single parenting growing, the growth of a child is imbalanced leaving the core and demanding family responsibility to the mother. This a much greater responsibility to the female gender, and with their passion and compassion the growth of the American youth is barely left on their hands consequently putting lots of responsibility on their shoulders. In essence the noble responsibility for the futurity of United States of America is in their hands (America Federation of Youth Groups, p. 23).
Causes of Teenage pregnancy
The causes of teenage pregnancy are many and are dependent on many factors and also the nature of environment that the teenager may be exposed to. In essence, all teenage pregnancies are caused by sexual acts that can be categorized as voluntary (where the teenage was willing to engage in the act) or involuntary (where the teenager was forced into the act. i.e. rape). Teenage pregnancy is often blamed on environmental factors; this is especially true in the United States where the role of such as the modern roles of ladies is not well defined. The perception of women as a weaker sex also gives them a hefty challenge and considering their male violence statistic on them is usually a great deal of empathy. With their human aspects coupled with sheer feeling of philanthropy, the female gender should be given many accolades (Bagchi, p. 42). On the contrary the undercurrents of weakness and lower cadre human being have been their face tags hence making their leaving a hell of a day. Ladies in the United States are often married at an early stage hence increasing the possibility of teenage pregnancies. In such societies, teenage pregnancy is normally perceived as a blessing and enough evidence that the teenager in question is fertile to bear more children. Another cause of teenage pregnancies is the lack of education among the teenagers in respect to safe sex and methods to prevent pregnancy during sexual activities. These methods include birth control techniques such as birth control pills and usage of condoms. Another technique that the teenagers are not often educated about is emphasis on abstinence as the surest way of prevention. In most cases the teenagers are educate and prepared on how to handle sexual advances from their boyfriends and other male counterparts (Newman, p. 104). The teenagers are forced to educate themselves and often the result is negative with the higher cases of pregnancies in the United States. Teenagers face many pressures from their environment and also peers, hence it is only suitable for the responsible members of the society to pass this education to them.
In the United States of America, cases of teenage pregnancy are attributed to lack of sex education from their parents or guardians and are normally outside marriage. It is common or fad in the United States for teenagers to engage in sexual acts before they reach the age of twenty. Although sad to contemplate, this is the reality that America has to face as teenagers are many times exposed to information and sexual scenes portrayed in our media and general society. Teenage pregnancy can also be attributed to the increasing intake of drugs by the youth in America (Kidd, p. 92). Many teenagers have reportedly engaged in sexual acts while being intoxicated only to regret later of the consequences that follows thereafter. Female teenagers have often reported of engaging in such acts involuntarily after the male counterpart intoxicated them without their knowledge. Such cases are often referred to as cases of date rape. Sexual; abuse through rape is also one of the causes of teenage pregnancies and has very profound effects in the life of the teenager. Not only does it leave her pregnant, it also leaves her with emotional scars that may never heal during her lifetime. Teenage pregnancy is also credited to discrepancies in the ages of the male counterpart and themselves. A report concluded that teenagers are more likely to become pregnant when the male counterpart is of an older age than them. This is because the teenager may choose to go on with the pregnancy rather than carry out an abortion (Gilliam, p. 28).
Another predominant factor that contributes to the increasing rate of teenage pregnancy is socioeconomic factors such as the economy of the family from where the teenager is coming from (Foster, p. 88). This exposes the teenagers to the risk of contracting other sexual infectious diseases such as Aids, HIV and Gonorrhea since they are forced to engage sexually with older men to earn a living for their families.
Effects of Teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy in many cases is one of the leading causes of abortions in the United States of America as the teenage faces increased stress disorder and the domestic implications of unwanted pregnancies to the community and the entire family are perceived by them to be unbearable hence making them to commit the act of abortion. A considerable number of teenage girls in the United States of America have turned into abortion due to several factors, the major one is the socioeconomic factor and also due to the perceived shame of the pregnancy. Most teenage girls in the United States of America commit the crime every year because of several reasons, besides the economic factor, the teenage girls are forced by their male counterparts into committing the crime as they are not ready to handle the responsibility that comes with caring for the baby.
The effects of teenage pregnancy are many and often the shame accompanying the pregnancy may lead the teenager to attempt acts such as abortion. A considerable number of women in the United States have turned into abortion due to several factors, the major one is the socioeconomic factor and the issue of teenage pregnancy. Most women in the United States commit the crime every year because of several reasons, besides the economic factor; there are other reasons and impacts of abortion that greatly endangers the lives of both mother and child. Abortion may also be contributed to the increased stress disorder and the domestic implications of unwanted pregnancies to the external community and the entire family. Such stress according to external research leads to abortion.
There are also implications associated with medical effects as teenage pregnancy may also harm the mother as she may not be reproductively prepared to handle the pregnancy. Teenage girls have also been shown to ignore pre natal medical attention up to the time they reach their 3rd trimester (Checkland 66). Teenage girls have also been shown to suffer when delivering birth and this is mostly attributed to nutritional deficiencies that the teenage girl may exhibit. Higher pregnancy complications have been shown to result in higher mortality rates.
There are also effects that touch on socioeconomic factors of the society. Such include the poverty levels in a society. For instance research has shown that a family is likely to suffer from poverty if the mother bore the children when still a teenager. This is because the teenager is hence forced to withdraw from school hence denying her the education that she might have used as a leeway out of poverty. This is one of the effects that hinder the mother from fulfilling her dreams. The social standing of the teenage girl becomes highly dependent on the status of the partner or boyfriend.
The born baby may display both psychosocial and physical development disabilities because they were born too soon (Bender 204). Studies have also shown that the child may be less physically and emotionally stimulated due to the mother not displaying affection to the baby. Such acts are displayed through touch and verbal communication with the infant. The teenage mother may be shown to be less sensitive to the needs of the child
Prevention of Teenage Pregnancy
Teachers and parents are encouraged to take an active role in the growing up of their children as this will highly encourage the dissemination of information regarding dating, courtship and any issue regarding sex to the children. Teenagers have also been shown to be highly influenced by their external environments and relationships with others. During adolescent stage, teenage girls have been shown to be influenced more by friends than any one at any other stage. Hence passing the right information to teenage girls will likely reduce the spreading of false and incorrect information regarding topics such as sex. Teenagers are also to be discouraged from engaging in steady dating that may have started early and instead they should be encouraged to have as many interactive and responsible friendships. Group activities that highly discourage idleness should be organized by the parent and teachers.
References
- Bagchi, Alaknanda. Teenage pregnancy: developing strategies for change in the twenty-first century. Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature 15.1 (1996): 41-50. Print
- Bender, Deborah. Managing teenage pregnancy: access to abortion, contraception, and sex education. Atlanta: Praeger, 2008
- Checkland, David. Teen pregnancy and parenting: social and ethical issues. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2004.
- Foster, Susan. Preventing Teenage pregnancy: a public policy guide. London: Oxford Publishers, 2008.
- Gilliam, Bill. The facts about teenage pregnancies. Perth: Continuum International Publishing Group, 1997.
- Guttmacher, Allan. U.S. Teenage pregnancy statistics national and state trends and trends by race and ethnicity. Washington: Guttmacher Institute, 2006.
- America Federation of Youth Groups. Teenage pregnancy: service and policy options. Time 2009: 70-71. Print.
- Kidd, Michael. Advances in applied social psychology, Volume 1. New York: Routledge, 2008.
- Newman, David. Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life Readings. Washington Post 2009: LZ01. Print.
- Rugh, Douglas. Teenage pregnancy: a global view. New York: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001.