Ecological factors associated with adolescent pregnancy and parenting

Abstract

The central purpose of this research was to discover, using Bronfenbrenner's conceptual framework of an ecological systems model, the combination of factors that successfully predicted pregnancy and parenting status in a convenience sample of 105 teenagers attending pregnancy prevention programs across a state in the southwestern United States. Nonpregnant or nonparenting teenagers were compared with pregnant and or parenting teenagers by factors organized by the following three main systems of interacting categories of variables, as explicated by Bronfenbrenner: (1) the microsystem, consisting of the psychological variables of self-esteem, depression, and stress levels experienced and the social psychological variables of alcohol and drug abuse; (2) the mesosystem, consisting of family structure, family functioning, problems with friends, the neighborhood, and the school, as well as enacted social support; and (3) the macrosystem, consisting of household income, parents' occupations, and race. Key words: adolescent pregnancy; ecological systems; pregnancy prevention; teen parenting ********** The United States, compared with European countries, has higher rates of pregnancy, abortion, and births among teenagers (Jones, Forrest, Henshaw, Silverman, & Torres, 1986). It is estimated that annually 1,000,000 teenagers become pregnant in the United States, and 40 percent of these pregnancies are terminated through abortion (Alan Guttmacher Institute, 1996). In addition, potentially negative consequences for teenage parents include economic and health risks to mother and child and cognitive and behavioral risks to children. (See Corcoran, 1998, for a review of empirical literature.) These high rates are of great social concern and have spurred efforts toward teen pregnancy prevention. Much research also has been generated in such fields as child development, psychology, social work, sociology, family science, nursing, and medicine. Synthesis of the literature in these areas is a challenge (Elster, McAnarney, & Lamb, 1983), particularly since the volume of literature on the topic of adolescent pregnancy has now reached hundreds of studies. Despite the amount of research, no well-accepted theory of adolescent pregnancy has been formulated (Bingham, Miller, & Adams, 1990). Although Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems model is not considered a theory per se, it can be used as a framework with which to organize the different perspectives and efforts, most of which do not have theoretical frameworks of their own. An exception is a study by Mayfield-Brown (1989), who looked at role transition to adulthood. Indeed, most of the studies in this area simply establish empirical relationships between adolescent pregnancy and other individual and social variables (Rodgers & Rowe, 1990). Bronfenbrenner (1979) adapted ecological systems theory from the physical sciences to human behavior. Bronfenbrenner discussed the different systems levels as (1) the microsystem--including the roles and characteristics of a developing individual, (2) the mesosystem--the settings with which the developing person interacts, (3) the exosystem--the settings with which the individual does not interact directly but that nonetheless have an effect on the individual's development, and (4) the macrosystem--the cultural values and variables that affect individuals. Because a number of variables have been studied, only the main system levels, that is, the macro-, meso-, and microsystems level variables, will be reviewed here and summarized briefly. (See Corcoran, in press, for a more complete review of the literature taking an ecological perspective.) MACROSYSTEM Two central variables that have been discussed at the macrosystem level are socioeconomic status (SES) and race. SES has been found to be a significant factor contributing to premature pregnancy and childbearing (Abrahamse, Morrison, & Waite, 1988; Barnett, Papini, & Gbur, 1991; Hanson, Myers, & Ginsburg, 1987; Mayfield-Brown, 1989; Robbins, Kaplan, & Martin, 1985; Shah & Zelnik, 1981). …