Teen Pregnancy Issues and Challenges

Since the 1950s, teen pregnancy has pulled in a lot of concern and consideration from religious pioneers, the general population, policymakers, and social researchers, especially in the United States and other created nations (Cherry and Dillon, 2019).

Statistic ponders keep on detailing that in created nations, for example, the United States, high school pregnancy results in lower instructive accomplishment, expanded rates of neediness, and more regrettable “life results” for offspring of adolescent moms contrasted with offspring of youthful grown-up ladies (Cherry and Dillon, 2019). Teen pregnancy is characterized as happening somewhere in the range of thirteen and nineteen years old (Cherry and Dillon, 2019). Most adolescent births in the United States happens among young ladies somewhere in the range of fifteen and nineteen years old, the worry over the age at which a young lady should conceive an offspring has existed all through mankind’s history (Cherry and Dillon, 2019).

An infant destined to an adolescent mother is more in danger than an infant destined to a developed lady. 9% of teenager young ladies have low-birth-weight babies (under 5.5 pounds) (Our Wellbeing, p.5). Low birth-weight children may have organs that are not completely created, which can prompt lung issues, for example, respiratory trouble disorder, or seeping in the cerebrum (Our Wellbeing, p.5). The infants are additionally 40x bound to die in their first month of life than ordinary weight babies, and are presented to mental impediment, cerebrum harm, and damage during childbirth (Our Wellbeing, p.5). An adolescent mother who has issues, candidly and physically, and demise rate from pregnancy difficulties is much higher (Our Wellbeing, p.5). Pregnant teens are bound to be undernourished and endure untimely or delayed work, and amid the initial three months of pregnancy; seven out of ten adolescent young ladies don’t get pre-birth care, see a specialist, or go to a facility (Our Wellbeing, p.5). Young ladies may likewise create numerous passionate issues, for example, discouragement, disgrace, blame, and stress (Our Wellbeing, p.5). Each social issue has theories, and the major theories on teen pregnancy are social conflict theory, evolution theory and cultivation theory.

There is a rational supposition that ‘young pregnancy’ comprises a type of a social issue (Murcott, 2008). An ignored part of this social development is investigated. It is proposed that philosophies of propagation go just so far in convincingly representing ambiguities contained in social developments of adolescent pregnancy and that energy about contemporary belief systems of youth is additionally required (Murcott, 2008.). Articulations of young pregnancy as an issue may then be comprehended as an issue of social contamination, situated at the crossing point of philosophies of generation on one hand and belief systems of youth on the other (Murcott, 2008).

As indicated by “Teen Pregnancy Issues and Difficulties” (2017), The social conflict theory is when human conduct results in clashes between contend gatherings, an adolescent is experiencing so much while being pregnant, which can cause strain among family and companions. Feelings are wild, and others probably won’t be able to deal with the emotional episodes. The article “Teens Pregnancy Issues and Difficulties” (2017) notice that teens attempting to exist together with their family can be a battle amid pregnancy, the teen may feel like they lost their family trust, and that can put an additional strain on their connections. Then again, experiencing a teen pregnancy can get frustrating, particularly if the pregnancy isn’t arranged. If the teen couple is still learning the basic things, pregnancy can make all that confusing (“Teens Pregnancy Issues and Difficulties”, 2017).

Teen pregnancy correlates with human evolution. The process of evolution involves a series of natural changes that cause species (populations of different organisms) to arise, adapt to the environment, and become extinct (“Introduction to Human Evolution”, 2019). All species or life forms have started through the procedure of biological evolution. Development happens when there is change in the hereditary material, the compound atom, DNA which is acquired from the parents, and proportions of different genes in a population (“Introduction to Human Evolution”, 2019). According to “Introduction to Human Evolution” (2019), Genes represent the segments of DNA that provide the chemical code for producing proteins, the information that is contained in the DNA can change by a process known as mutation. The way genes are expressed that is, how they influence the body or behavior of an organism can also change. Genes affect how the body and behavior of an organism develop during its life, and therefore genetically inherited characteristics can influence the likelihood of an organism’s survival and reproduction (“Introduction to Human Evolution”, 2019).

With high numbers of teen pregnancy throughout the years, experts have come forward with a theory that these young mothers are responding to a pattern in human evolution that induces people growing up in extremely stressful circumstances to bear children early and often (Goleman, 2018). According to Goleman (2018), “Children who grow up in dangerous conditions, the theory holds, are primed to boost the chances of having their genes survive into the next generation by choosing earlier sex, earlier motherhood and more children”. One prediction of the theory is that girls who grow up in households where there is great emotional stress, and especially where the father is absent, will undergo puberty at an earlier age than other girls (Goleman, 2018). Goleman (2018) Stated; “When a child learns that the world is insecure and risky, the biological response is to get into reproduction sooner. Because the danger is that if you don’t, you won’t reproduce at all.”

Adolescents who have high levels of exposure to television programs that contain sexual content are twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy over the following three years as their peers who watch few such shows (“TV Sex Influences Teen Pregnancy”, 2015). Young people get a lot of data about sex through TV and that programming commonly does not feature the dangers and obligations of sex (“TV Sex Influences Teen Pregnancy”, 2015). Which lead to the cultivation theory.

The cultivation theory was proposed by George Gerbner. It is one of the core theories of media effects (in Cultural Communication, 2015). As indicated by the theory, individuals who sit in front of the TV as often as possible are bound to be affected by the messages from the universe of TV (In Cultural Communication, 2015). The impact goes to such a degree, that people reality view and observations begin reflecting what they over and over observe and hear on TV. TV is considered to contribute autonomously to the way individuals see social reality (In Cultural Communication, 2015).

According to In Cultural Communication (2015), This theory postulates that staring at the TV every now and again impacts a person to build up specific thoughts of the real world or convictions and suspicions about existence that reflect the most reliable or general qualities that are displayed on TV. The more an individual sit in front of the TV, the more probable he/she is to be impacted by what he watches when contrasted with other people who observe (In Cultural Communication, 2015). TV offers a plenty of thoughts and origination on an assortment of social and social elements like race, sex, and sexuality (In Cultural Communication, 2015). Different examinations have upheld the case that the individuals who watch TV more, regularly show higher inclinations of being discouraged, feeling of distance, have sentiments of question and imagine that the world is a malevolent spot (In Cultural Communication, 2015).

Teen pregnancy been happening for years now and will continue to happen if it still correlates to these three theories, social conflict theory, evolution theory and cultivation theory. I do agree with these three theories about teen pregnancy, for the simple fact that, I do know teens already go through all these emotions and feeling because of puberty. Therefore, teens start to bumps heads with there parents and start thinking they are mature enough to make their own decision. Also, when sex is always on tv, teens most likely going to initiate in it because it’s something to do or they believe they’re in love and that’s what they supposed to do. They aren’t really educated on protection, so that’s when teen pregnancy occurs, and social conflict and cultivation theories comes in place. Most teens do have a falling out with family and friends because they feel pressure and think nobody understand what they are going though. Also, when a child isn’t in a stable or calm environment, they tend to develop faster and have sex earlier than most, and that’s when evolution theory takes place.

References

1. Cherry, A. L., & Dillon, M. E. (2019 February 23). Teenage Pregnancy – Childhood Studies – Oxford Bibliographies – obo. Retrieved from http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199791231/obo-9780199791231-0111.xml
2. Goleman, D. (2018, October 25). Theory links teen pregnancy to evolution. Retrieved March 9, 2019, from https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1991-07-30-1991211008-story.html
   In Cultural Communication, P. (2015, March 27). Cultivation Theory. Retrieved March 9, 2019, from https://www.communicationtheory.org/cultivation-theory/
3. Introduction to Human Evolution. (2019, January 16). Retrieved March 9, 2019, from http://humanorigins.si.edu/education/introduction-human-evolution
4. Murcott, A. (2008). The social construction of teenage pregnancy: A problem in the ideologies of childhood and reproduction. Sociology of Health & Illness, 2(1), 1-23. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9566.1980.tb00198.x
5. Our Health, Our Futures – Sexual Issues – Teen Pregnancy, p. 5 – Health Risks. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.smith.edu/ourhealthourfutures/teenpreg5.html
6. Teen Pregnancy Issues and Challenges. (2017, September 06). Retrieved from http://americanpregnancy.org/unplanned-pregnancy/teen-pregnancy-issues-challenges/
7. TV Sex Influences Teen Pregnancy. (2015, October 06). Retrieved March 9, 2019, from https://psychcentral.com/news/2008/11/05/tv-sex-influences-teen-pregnancy/3269.html

Did you like this example?

1106

46