Teens, Sex, and Virginity - Teenage Pregnancy Essay

Teenage Pregnancy Teenage pregnancy has always been present in society. There is research stating that about half the women, born between 1900- 1910, who were interviewed were non-virginal at marriage (17 Ravoira). This contradicts some thoughts that premarital sexual behavior is something new. There was another study done in 1953, it found that one fifth of all first births to women were conceived before marriage (17 Ravoira). Even before our modern openness in discussing sexual behavior and acceptance that it does occur, it was quite routine. In earlier society, the incidence of teenage pregnancy was a moral problem. This was because people looked at the child as filius nullius (nobodys child), or illegitimate and the†¦show more content†¦With the onset of the sexual revolution in the 1960s and 70s there were some major changes. An important one being that people were more likely to verbally express what they had been doing sexually. This probably occurred because of the ability to control conception through contraception. There wasnt really an increase in then number of sexually experienced black teenagers but, the number of white teenagers went up. During the 1970s, the number of white teens who were sexually experienced doubled, and along with that birthrates of these teens increased by more than 50 percent. It was during this time that adolscent pregnancy changed from a moral issue to an economic or welfare issue (20 Ravoira). Over 1 million teenagers become pregnant in the United States every year. Only about half of them give birth. The fact that 11,500 of these births in 1989 were to girls 14 and under is scary (1 Freeman). These are not just teenagers but children having children. Surprisingly, though, the teenage birth rates are falling. In the early 1970s, 61.7 births per 1000 teenagers were registered but, in 1983, the rate was 51.7 per 1000 (10 McCuen). Even though the incidents of teenage births may be going down, it is still significant, there is always a worry about the how the American family with all of these too young parents, will function. During the 1960s, people began to see adolscent pregnancy as the cause forShow MoreRelatedTeen Pregnancy : Education Over Abstinence3277 Words   |  14 PagesRasmussen 3 October, 2014 Teen Pregnancy: Education over Abstinence Many parents dread the day they see their teenage children having children of their own. The teens are not to blame for having sex without protection. They should not have been made to take virginity pledges in their past, because they do not work. The boyfriend should not be arrested just because he happens to be a couple years older than his girlfriend. 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