home



**Teen Pregnancy: How Can it be Prevented?** **By: Caitlyn Buchanan **

media type="file" key="MTV's 'Teen Mom' documentary Trailer - YouTube.flv" width="396" height="297" align="right"

//**How MTV is Helping Prevent Teen Pregnancy:**//
=[| It's Your Sex Life]=

__ //**Things to Think About:**// __
 * The U.S. has the //**highest teen pregnancy rate**// in the industrialized world – twice as high as in England or Canada, and ten times higher as in Switzerland.
 * Adolescents have the highest age-specific risk for unintended pregnancy in the U.S.
 * Despite continued efforts to decrease teen-age sexual activity //**more**// than **50%** of U.S. teenagers have had sexual intercourse.
 * A sexually active teen who does not use contraceptives has a //**90% chance**// of becoming pregnant **within a //year//**//.//
 * Approximately **60%** of adolescent mothers //**live in poverty**// at the time of the birth of their babies.
 * 73% of adolescent mothers go on welfare within 5 years of giving birth.
 * Data suggests that adolescents who report **early onset** of sexual behavior report //**less**// contraceptive use.
 * Depression can lead to adolescents having multiple sexual partners and committing risky sexual behavior i.e. non-use of contraception.

__**When is it effective to talk about prevention?**__ //**High School?** //
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Most prevention programs are directed towards this group because the majority of research that has been complete has examined students at this age.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Females and males at this age are more likely to be engaged by a presentation because they are more physically mature.

//<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 130%;">** Middle School? ** //
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Interventions may also be more effective with this age group as different developmental processes may make them more impressionable before they have made decisions and formed their own opinions on sexuality, but <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> the precise age at which information should be provided depends on the physical, emotional, and intellectual development of the young people as well as their level of understanding.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Early romantic relationships frequently begin within peer groups in late elementary and early middle school.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Students entering middle school are exposed to a new social system that increases their contact with older adolescents.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The amount of information about the sexual practices of young adolescents is lacking making it hard to know how at-risk middle school students are.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">In a study done in Texas middle schools that focused on providing a program about sexual activity, fewer students in the middle schools that provided a program compared to those that hadn't were sexual activity.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__How can we make talking about prevention effective?__

 * <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">//If teen pregnancy prevention programs just teach adolescents how to obtain contraceptives or to remain abstinent, they will not be effective. Prevention programs need to address multiple facets to fully address the issue. These are only a// <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">few //examples of prevention techniques.// **

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">//**Abstinence Programs**//

 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Traditionally supported by parents, schools, etc. because of the guarantee that abstinence provides.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstinence is the only 100% preventative form of birth control.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Abstinence programs focus on developing character traits that prepare youths for future-oriented goals.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">//**Baby Simulator Programs**//

 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Infant is a computerized baby engineered to simulate typical unpredictable infant behavior.
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The goal of the program is to create a lasting impression on both teen women and men of the personal sacrifice and challenges required of a new parent.
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">In a study, 79% of high school students claimed that the program made them more concerned about the risks of becoming pregnant.
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">In a qualitative study, a sample of 11th graders demonstrated a clearer understanding of what is involved in infant-care/childrearing.

//**<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Parent Communication **//

 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Family involvement, family structure, parental values, parental monitoring, and parent-child communication are important factors influencing critical life choices.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Two of the most important social-contextual influences on adolescents are their influence sexual initiation.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The closeness of family ties, parental preteen support, and mother-daughter relationships is associated with teens either not having or delaying sexual intercourse.



<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Boulter, L. T. (2007). The effectiveness of peer-led FAS/FAE prevention presentations in middle and high schools. //Journal Of Alcohol & Drug Education//, //51//(3), 7-26.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Byers, E., Sears, H. A., Voyer, S. D., Thurlow, J. L., Cohen, J. N., & Weaver, A. D. (2003). An adolescent perspective on sexual health education at school and home: II. middle school students. //Canadian Journal Of Human Sexuality//, //12//(1), 19-33.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">De Rosa, C. J., Ethier, K. A., Kim, D. H., Cumberland, W. G., Afifi, A. A., Kotlerman, J., & ... Kerndt, P. R. (2010). Sexual intercourse and oral sex among public middle school students: prevalence and correlates. //Perspectives On Sexual & Reproductive Health//, //42//(3), 197-205. doi:10.1363/4219710
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Guilamo-Ramos, V., Jaccard, J., Dittus, P., Bouris, A., Holloway, I., & Casillas, E. (2007). Adolescent expectancies, parent-adolescent communication and intentions to have sexual intercourse among inner-city, middle school youth. //Annals Of Behavioral Medicine//, //34//(1), 56-66. doi:10.1080/08836610701495664
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Kosunen, E. P. (2003). Risk-taking sexual behaviour and self-reported depression in – a school-based survey. //Child: Care, Health & Development//, //29//(5), 337-344.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Lederman, R. P., Wenyaw, C., & Roberts-Gray, C. (2008). Parent—adolescent relationship education (PARE): program delivery to reduce risks for adolescent pregnancy and STDs. //Behavioral Medicine//, //33//(4), 137-143.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Somers, C. L. (2006). Teenage pregnancy prevention and adolescents' sexual outcomes: an approach. //American Secondary Education//, //34//(2), 4-24.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Somers, C. M. (2001). Effectiveness of the 'Baby Think It Over' teen pregnancy prevention program. //Journal Of School Health//, //71//(5), 188.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Yampolskaya, S., Brown, E. C., & Vargo, A. C. (2004). Assessment of teen pregnancy prevention interventions among middle school youth. //Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal//, //21//(1), 69-83
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">[[file:MLE 4760- Article 1.pdf]][[file:MLE- Article 2.pdf]].[[file:MLE 4760- Article 7.pdf]][[file:MLE 4760- Article 5.pdf]] <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">[[file:MLE 4760- Article 9.pdf]] [[file:MLE 4760- Article 10.pdf]]<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">[[file:MLE 4760- Article 8.pdf]][[file:MLE 4760- Article 3.pdf]][[file:MLE 4760- Article 4.pdf]][[file:MLE 4760- Article 6.pdf]]