Evaluation of an infant simulator intervention for teen pregnancy prevention.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of simulation as a strategy to influence teens' perceptions of pregnancy and parenting.

DESIGN

This pilot study was a preexperimental, one group pre/posttest design.

SETTING

The school-based wellness center of a high school was the setting for the weekly sessions and the pre/posttest administration.

PARTICIPANTS

Sample members participated in 6 weekly Baby Think it Over (BTIO) classes and an infant simulator experience. The final sample included 79 teens age 14 to 18 years who attended one of eight BTIO sessions.

METHODS

We used the Thoughts on Teen Parenting Survey (TTPS) to assess the perceptions of teens with regard to the costs and rewards associated with teen parenting. The TTPS yields a composite score of the teen attitudes toward the teen parenting experience and eight subscale scores that assess different areas of teen life.

RESULTS

No significant differences were found in the mean pre/posttest scores or in correlations of the demographic data and mean scores. Two significant differences in pre/posttest subscale scores were in the areas of friends and personal characteristics.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this study suggest that the effectiveness of using infant simulators to influence the perceptions of teens about the reality of teen parenting is minimal.