Consequences of teenage pregnancy and motherhood.

In the past 15-20 years there has been a significant increase in sexual activity among teenagers as well as an increase in the rate of pregnancy. Teenage pregnancy has many social, psychological, economic and health consequences. Although there has been a significant increase in the use of abortion since the early 1970s among white teenagers, the majority of pregnant teenagers opt to carry their pregnancy to term and raise their child themselves. This review of the literature concerns itself with some of the variables associated with adolescent sexual behavior focusing on teenage pregnancy and the consequences of motherhood on child development. Suggestions are made for strategies that may be effective in ameliorating some of the problems as well as the research required for evaluating such strategies.