Octavia Davis
November 21, 2014
Comp 105 Early pregnancy is a serious problem for teenagers. Teenagers who are pregnant cannot usually support the child on their own. Early pregnancy can have various possible reasons. This paper focuses on determining the possible reasons for early pregnancy among teenagers. Victims of child abuse and/or neglect are at increased risk for delinquency and running away. However, existing research indicates that the relationship is not inevitable, because the majority of childhood victims do not manifest these problem behaviors. Significantly less is known about connections between childhood victimization and other problem behaviors, such as teenage pregnancy, alcohol and illicit drug use and abuse, and self-destructive behavior. Current knowledge about these outcomes is sparse and only suggestive. Further research is desperately needed to document whether abused and/or neglected children are at increased risk for these adolescent problem behaviors, in comparison to control children and adolescents, and to indicate the extent or magnitude of these relationships. Despite the paucity of research, one can still speculate on some of the potential mechanisms that may link childhood victimization and adolescent problem behaviors (Lamb and Ketterlinus 140). Childhood victimization appears to increase risk for the development of a range of problems in adolescence, including delinquency and violence, running away, sexual promiscuity and teenage pregnancy, and alcohol and drug use and abuse. However, although there are extensive clinical accounts and speculations about the prevalence of these problem behaviors among adolescents who were abused or neglected in childhood, there is scant systematic evidence concerning the extent of these associations, the increased risk relative to control children, and the underlying causal mechanisms.