Teenage Parents in Society
Uploaded by spootyhead on Mar 08, 2007
Teenage Parents in Society
Teen parenting these days is a startling epidemic. In fact, the U.S. leads all other developed nations in incidences of pregnancy among adolescents’ age 15-19 (Robinson). With all of the problems that we are currently facing as a nation one would not think that this would be one of the worst, but it is. The rates that contribute to the high averages of teen pregnancies are appalling. For every five girls you see, three of them are having babies (Moorer). These rates have done nothing but escalate alarmingly over the past few years. The rates of teen fathers with children are some of the most appalling. According to Maureen Pirog-good, writer and researcher, “roughly 7 percent of young men become fathers in their teens”. With the growing lack of responsibility in today’s youth these rates are only to be expected. By researching the lives and facts of teen fathers, one finds risk factors that contribute to this spreading epidemic.
There are many factors that contribute to the growing number of teen fathers. Some these rates are often affected by demographic factors such as race and age. Fathers between the age of 14 and 21 are of the following racial backgrounds: 2% white, 5% black, and 2% Hispanic (Thornberry). Some of the higher rates of teen fathers are those for teen males of the younger age group. Fourteen year olds are getting 17-18 year old girls pregnant (Moorer). There are many other factors that contribute to higher rates of teen fathers these days. One of the most obvious factors is the delinquency rate among today’s male youth. The numbers of males that are getting in trouble with the law directly affect the number of teen fathers in today’s society. Along with delinquency, disruptive behavior, and high arrest rates prove to be “helpful” to teenage fatherhood (Thornberry). Our younger generation is getting in criminal situations more and more often. Over the past four years alone delinquency rates have nearly tripled in proportion. Directly affecting this rate, is the rates of males under twenty-five that are, or have been involved in some kind of gang activity. Young males that are involved in gangs are also more...