Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
1-1997
Abstract
Teen pregnancy has become an issue that educators and public policy makers are obliged to treat as a serious problem. Too often, explanations of teen pregnancy have included uncritical use of the notion of adolescents at risk. Recently, however, attention has been given to structurally-determined contextual factors in explaining teen pregnancy. Such contextual factors include economic and educational opportunities and costs, as well as chances for valued participation in socially and culturally stable communities. This interest in contextual factors parallels a development in the literature on high school dropouts. A data set previously employed to study variability in drop-out rates among school districts in the Appalachian state of West Virginia was used. Results show that teen pregnancy can be explained in much the same way as dropping out. Explanation in terms of contextual factors helps to avoid the victim-blaming accounts sometimes associated with the notion of teenagers at risk. It also suggests that conventional pregnancy prevention programs may be constrained by these same contextual factors in ways that are not typically appreciated.
DOI
10.1080/00220671.1997.10543774
Recommended Citation
Bickel, R., Weaver, S., Williams, T., & Lange, L. (1997). Opportunity, community, and teen pregnancy in an Appalachian state. The Journal of Educational Research, 90(3), 175-181. Doi: 10.1080/00220671.1997.10543774
Included in
Civic and Community Engagement Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Maternal and Child Health Commons, Rural Sociology Commons
