Daughters of Teenage Mothers More Likely to Have a Teenage Birth than Daughters of Older Mothers

Abstract

Researchers analyzed data on 15-44 year old black and white women who had a teenage birth to examine teenage marriage and fertility. Black women had a child as teenagers at more than twice the rate of white women (43% vs. 19%). But white women married as teenagers at twice the rate of black women (35% vs. 17%). Black women were >8 times more likely to have a premarital teenage birth than white women (33% vs. 4%). For the youngest cohort (born between 1964-68) almost 40% of teenage births to white mothers occurred premaritally compared with 90% to black mothers. Mothers of black daughters were more apt to have experienced their 1st birth as teenagers or before age 18 than were the mothers of white women (58% vs. 33% and 32% vs. 12% respectively). A solid and significant intergenerational pattern of teenage fertility existed between mothers age at 1st birth and daughters having a teenage birth. This relationship remained strong even though early sexual activity and nonuse of a contraceptive at 1st intercourse were also related strongly to teenage pregnancy. Teenage births within marriage were more strongly related intergenerationally than was premarital teenage births for whites. For blacks the intergenerational pattern affected only premarital teenage birth. Religion urban resident and birth cohort all affected the probability that a white woman would give birth as a teenager but they explained just a small part of the effect of mothers age at 1st birth. Controlling mothers education and family structure resulted in a sizable decline in the effect of mothers age at 1st birth on daughters fertility regardless of race. Perhaps the poor socioeconomic environment where the mothers raised their daughters and the emotional and financial impact of family instability influenced the intergenerational relationship. White and black daughters of teenage mothers had a 75% and 34% higher probability respectively of having a teenage birth than were daughters of older mothers.