Teenage Pregnancy in the African American Community of Hinds Jackson, Mississippi - Research Paper Example

Teenage Pregnancy in the African American Community of Hinds Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the capital of the state of Mississippi, is the largest city in terms of population, and according to the Center for Immigrant Studies (2006) experienced the highest proportion of immigrants than any other state in the United States. Mississippi encompasses 82 counties, while Jackson is part of the largest county Hinds, together with areas in Rankin and Madison. Jackson is home to more African Americans than white Americans or other races, the community of Hinds, specifically within the zip code 39209 is also predominately African American. The total population of Mississippi, that experienced a change of 2.6% between 2000 and 2007 (Mississippi State department of Health, 2007) is 2,918,785; 26.3% of that population is under the age of 18. The total population of Hinds is 178,784 with 29.1% being under 18 years of age. The average life expectancy at birth in Mississippi is 74.9 years (76.7 years for females, 71.3 years for males, 76.2 years for whites, and 72.5 years for African Americans), in Hinds the life expectancy at birth is only 2 months below the state average at 74.7 years, but higher for females with 78.4 years and less for males with 70.6 years; averages for whites however are 79.4 years and for African Americans 72.6 years; so while the average life expectancy for African Americans living in Hinds is 1 month more than the state average, it is 7.2 years below that of their white Americans living in Hinds, indicating a wider gap between life expectancy of white and African Americans living in Hinds than in the state of Mississippi. 2007 census statistics show that 21.5% of the total population of Mississippi attained less than a High School diploma (20.5% of females, 23.1% of males, 17% of white Americans and 29.6% of African Americans) indicating a disparity of 12.6% between white and African Americans, that difference is even more evident in Hinds where only 8.7% of the white population were not educated beyond middle school but 22.3% of African Americans in Hinds did not attend high school – a wider disparity of 13.6%; 20.4% of males and 17.9% of female in Hinds have less than a high school diploma. The percentage of teen pregnancies in Mississippi (Mississippi State department of Health , 2007) is 81.5% per 1000 females; in Hinds the total percentage is slightly lower at 81.2%. The marked difference in state numbers however, is between white and African Americans with 62.7% per 1000 white and 101.8% per 1000 African American adolescent pregnancies, indicating a gap of 39.1%. An even wider gap is evident in Hinds with 31.4% per 1000 white and 98.1% per 1000 African American teen pregnancies, showing a very large difference of 59.7%. The problem extracted from this data is the lack of responsible sexual behavior specifically among African American adolescents. The problem of large numbers of teen pregnancies impacts not only on the mother and child but on the community as well. Teenagers who become pregnant can suffer both psychological and emotional trials; teenage mothers are by definition single mothers in most cases, and therefore have primary accountability for the child after birth; most would not complete high school and are therefore limited in employment prospects during pregnancy and after. Financial difficulties would therefore ensue and would thus need to rely on community and government assistance and support. Teenage mothers are more likely to bear premature babies and babies with a low weight at birth; the mortality rate at birth is also higher among adolescents. The spiral then continues, as research shows that children of teenage mothers usually live a less encouraging and often de-motivating home life; suffer behavioral problems and are less likely to do well academically. Statistics also determine that children born from teenage mothers are more prone to early sex and themselves then becoming a teenage mother. Adolescent pregnancies are a source and a result of low levels of economic development and although the US and more particularly Mississippi has made enormous in roads to declining the number of pregnancies among teenage girls; in fact there has been a drop of 34% overall since 1991 and a larger decrease for African Americans (Profiles, p.23), nevertheless the rates remain the highest in the western world. Teenage pregnancy is not a new phenomena but rather a newly made concern because fifty years ago if an adolescent became pregnant she was usually married off and therefore not a social problem (Desirae et al, 2007); between 1960 and 1975 however, the number of teenage pregnancies rose by over 50% and between 1960 and 1992 increased fourfold (Hogan, Sun & Cornwell, 2000). Today the number of adolescents engaging in sexual intercourse is increasing even though parents, schools and governments are condoning it and advocating abstinence as the favored choice of contraception. Research has for many years tried to determine the causes or reasons for teenage pregnancy and aspects such as family background, the age of first sexual intercourse, and sexual abuse as a child have all been illustrated as reasons (Desirae et al, 2007). Socioeconomic background is also an issue and studies show that teenagers living in poor socio economic environments, which are predominately African American, are more likely to become pregnant (Singh, Darroch & Frost, 2001). A poor economic background in turn relates to other variables that have a bearing on teen pregnancy; factors such as educational level (Singh, Darroch, & Frost, 2001). Research also shows that many teenage girls become pregnant as a matter of choice because they see pregnancy as the only goal they can attain (Winter, 1997, cited in Desirae, Domenico, Karen & Jones, 2007, p. 4); due to a childhood of low school attainment and self assurance they acquire no real objectives in life in terms of academia of employment, so for them pregnancy is the only option for them to be considered as independent adults (Turner, 2004). Girls who become teenage mothers are usually those already having problems at school or live within a neglected or abusive household (Coles, 2005). Race and socioeconomic factors are most often linked and in the case of African Americans living in Hinds they represent the lower stratum, so community may be a means of determining the cause of teenage pregnancy. References Coles, C. (2005). Teen pregnancy and “internal poverty.” The Futurist, vol. 38 (7), 10. Hogan, D. P., Sun, R., & Cornwell, G. T. (2000). Sexual and fertility behaviors of American females aged 15-19 years: 1985, 1990, and 1995. American Journal of Public Health, 90, 1421- 1425. Mississippi State Department of Health, Hinds County 2007 Health Profiles, Office of Vital Statistics. Mississippi State Department of Health. Patient Information Management System (2007). Turner, K. M. (2004). Young women’s views on teenage motherhood: a possible explanation for the relationship between socioeconomic background and teenage pregnancy outcome. Journal of Youth Studies, 7, 221-238. Read More