Teenage Pregnancy Prevention: Social Causes and Possible Solutions

In my argumentative essay about teenage pregnancy I will be addressing the topic of ‘What is the best solution to combat Florida’s teen pregnancy problem?’ I will focus on the related subtopics to the issue: Health, Education, and Social Media.

To begin, the term ‘Teenage Pregnancy’ refers to a girl between the ages of 12-19 becoming pregnant. In Florida specifically, we see this problem most common in girls aged 18-19. In fact, Florida is ranked 24 out of the 50 United States for their teen birth rates. And the United States, as a whole, is ranked number one in teen pregnancy, when compared to the rest of the developed countries in the world. While global teen birth rates have dramatically decreased over the decades, the United States has the technology and means of combating the problem, so teen pregnancy should not still be as prevalent.

In order to find a solution to the topic of teen pregnancy, we must first identify the social causes. One factor common among most girls who undergo pregnancy in their teens, is that of how they were raised. According to a study of pregnant teens, conducted by the University of Albany “All participants belonged to single parent households… This emerged as a common fact in all interviews.” Generally, these households are low income and can have multiple children to support. The fact that these teens are lower on the socioeconomic scale, can also contribute to how they are treated among their peers. Bullying is another major cause and effect of teenage pregnancy. Cumulative analysis shows that regardless of family-related risks, children who experienced bullying have a higher chance of becoming teen parents. Interestingly, the converse was also proven to be true. The University of Arkansas “found a predictive association between being a bully in childhood and becoming a teen mother.” Thankfully, over the past few years multiple organizations and hotlines have been heavily promoted, to help prevent the spread of bullying, like the ‘It Gets Better Project’ and the ‘Kind Campaign’. Action is already being taken to stop bullying, and many government facilities exist to assist low-income families, helping to slow the outcome of pregnant teens.

Another major cause for teenage pregnancy in the U.S. is media glorification. Glorification is defined as something being described as enjoyable, especially without justification, which is exactly what shows like ‘16 & Pregnant’ do. A Aubrey study discovered that “teenagers who watched this program viewed the benefits of teen pregnancy as greater than the risks, and viewed themselves as less susceptible to the risk of teen pregnancy.” This is a major issue, considering young minds are highly impressionable, and serves as a prime example of the country’s lack of action against media-based catalysts for teen pregnancy. So, this points to a clear solution, awareness of teen pregnancy and it's risks through social media and general media platforms. This solution is cost effective and can be implemented globally.

In fact, a case written by researcher Anthony Ochen stated “results of multivariable analysis on social factors and teenage pregnancy reveals that … lack of awareness [was] significantly associated with teenage pregnancy” (in the Philippines, Uganda, and the United States). This further stresses the point that ignorance on the subject of teen pregnancy needs to stop because it is a serious global matter. In the Philippines, 'the high number of dropout rate [among] girls is [due to] marriage and family matters, which can be treated also as teenage pregnancy,' according to Phillipine Star.

Social media would be a good way to reach as many possible teens and spread awareness because most social platforms are used mainly by younger generations. Additionally, less than 20 countries worldwide have banned social media, meaning an overwhelming majority of the world has access to some type of social platform. Campaigns targeted at teenagers could highlight the risks of sex and teenage pregnancy, while also reccommending safe practices to prevent further pregnancies.

To conclude the topic of teenage pregnancy in this argumentative essay, I belive that social media action should be taken worldwide and more developed countries should focus on shows, books, or other media types that may glorify teen pregnancy, making it clear that not all events shown are realistic. Should this action be taken, teen pregnancy rates should continue to decrease, until it is no longer an issue. Thank you for reading!