The effects of individual and regional factors on adolescent fertility rates: The case of Lithuania

The authors have examined the large variation in adolescent fertility rates between and within countries to better understand the regional and individual factors underlying early childbearing. Using low spatial level data from the Lithuanian Census, they found that there is a high degree of regional differentiation within Lithuania, with differences of up to 20-fold between rates in different regions. Therefore, they investigated whether the regional differentiation in adolescent fertility rates is determined by different regional contexts or by the individual characteristics of teenage mothers. Surprisingly, the results of their regression models showed that the regional context did not have a large effect on adolescent fertility – the large differences between regions appeared due to the unequal spatial distribution of socio-economically disadvantaged teenagers. Their results also showed that women who had their first child during adolescence were statistically significantly different from those who postponed motherhood: those who gave birth during adolescence were more likely to belong to ethnic minorities (1.4 times more likely), receive government benefits (10 times), live in large households (10 times), and reside in rural areas (1.4 times). They were also more likely to terminate their education early, acquiring only a primary (7 times more likely) or lower-secondary (8 times) education. The study’s findings suggest that public strategies and policies should address individual factors to reduce adolescent fertility rates and regional disparities. Teenage mothers should be supported to return to the education system as early as possible, thus preventing a further widening of the gap between their socioeconomic status and that of their childless peers.