Pregnancies, abortions, and births to unmarried women occur frequently in the United States; these are of particular concern when they occur to teenagers. This study examined the effects of age on the decision to have an abortion for teenagers (N=256) at a clinic serving a predominantly white clientele from several mid-size cities and the surrounding rural areas. For the purposes of this study the 256 teenagers were divided into two groups: the young young who were age 16 or younger (N=66) and the old young who were age 17 to 19 (N=190). Results confirmed six hypotheses which assert that the younger the teenager: (1) the more likely it will be that age is the dominant reason for terminating the pregnancy; (2) the more likely it is to be her first pregnancy and therefore her first abortion; (3) the less likely she is to be married and living with a husband or male partner and the more likely to be living with her parents; (4) the more likely she is to be a student but with fewer years of schooling and less likely to be employed or economically self-sufficient; (5) the more likely she is to involve others in the decision to terminate the pregnancy and the more likely the partner and/or parent would agree with the decision, support it, and accompany her to the clinic; and (6) the less likely she is to ever have used any method of birth control. (Author/ABL)
ملاحظات :
Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations (49th, Atlanta, GA, November 14-19, 1987).
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