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Running head: TEENAGE PPREGNANCY 1

Teenage Pregnancy

Date

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TEENAGE PPREGNANCY 2

Abstract

Social problems are behaviours which are viewed to break social norms in a range of societies.

In society, social issues are considered to disturb the peaceful serenity in the community, and this

includes drug abuse, teenage pregnancies, immortality, divorce and poverty. My paper will

discuss on teenage pregnancies as a social problem and the relationship between the Bible and

the identified social problem.

TEENAGE PPREGNANCY 3

Social Problem

Teenage Pregnancy

Teenage pregnancy is where girls below the age of 20 get pregnant. Any girl is liable to

get a carry a baby at any time from the first menstrual period (Beatrix, 2017). However the fact

that a child qualifies to carry a baby at around the age of 12, social norms tend to restrict girls to

getting pregnant or even having sex before marriage. Sex before marriage is referred to as

fornication.

Over time, the view of teenage pregnancies has changed hence the diversity in the

number of adolescent girls affected geographically. In rural areas where social norms are still

adhered to, the levels are low as compared to urban areas where inclusion is being embraced

(Akella & Jordan, 2014). However, the access to contraceptives is also a factor. In the USA for

example where contraceptives can easily be accessed, teenage pregnancy cases are low as

compared to some African suburb areas.

Causes of Teenage Pregnancies

Low Education Levels

Low educational levels breed poor decisions. When teenagers are not educated about how

fertilization occurs, they end up being victims of teenage pregnancies as they might not even

know how they get pregnant nor how to control. Primary education such as science which

teaches the reproduction system and how fertilization works helps in combating teenage

pregnancies as girls get to understand the consequences of immature sexual practices and

available control measures.

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Drug Abuse

Some girls get pregnant unknowingly and realize when it is too late to apply a control

measure. When a person is sober, her mind is clear, and quality decisions can be made, i.e. she

can practice safe sex by using a condom, as opposed to when drunk where she can engage in

sexual activity with no control measure and forget until pregnancy signs show up when a teen

girl realizes she is pregnant.

Television Shows

Some reality TV shows such as Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant are examples. The

program series show young girls who got pregnant and their children in a manner that seems to

glorify them. The compliments makes girls who follow up on the show also want to have babies

even without rethinking over the adverse implications that come with early parenting due to the

fact that the TV shows make them believe they are inevitable and nothing terrible will happen to

them (Aubrey & Kim, 2014).

Effects of Teen Pregnancy

Child Development

As explained earlier that teen pregnancies resulting from drug use are mostly unknown. A

teen, i.e. in college may not avoid food and drinks, i.e. cigarettes and alcohol which have

negative implications for the developing baby and lead to complications later such as

miscarriages and premature babies.

Stress

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Parenting is not an easy task as portrayed in some shows. When teens who are lured to

getting pregnant due to TV shows realize the work is different and complicated, they end up

getting depressed and stressed and this may lead to psychological disorders such as major

depression. Diseases such as depression have adverse effects on both the baby and the mother

and result in complications that can even lead to death if not controlled.

Teens rarely possess parenting virtues such as maturity, patience and handling stress and

hence the process may from conception to birth may build a negative perception on becoming a

parent and this may alter future living, i.e. some teens who had experienced teen pregnancy have

the fear to get pregnant, and this may cause family issues.

Education Impacts

Most teens get pregnant when they are still at school, and they end up getting poor results and

even being thrown out of college. The experience is traumatic, and this negatively affects the

teen and alters educational and career life as some teens feel demoralized and also drop out of

school a journey that ruins their future.

The Bible and Teenage Pregnancy

The Bible addresses the issue of teenage pregnancy by warning against fornication which

is the practice of sex before marriage (Eve, 2014). People get married after going through school,

building a successful career and then deciding to settle down with someone. During the time of

the writing of the Bible, social norms were that anyone found practising fornication was

punished as per societal doctrines at the time.

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People who wrote the Bible might have known of such adverse effects that come with

premature sex, and that’s why they included it in the holy book which acted as a constitution,

and whatever was written in it had to be adhered to.

Drug abuse also contributes to teenage pregnancy as discussed above. The bible

addresses cases of drug abuse and highlights on alcohol where it states that you should not drink

too much that you become a fool (Alina et al., 2016). A teen can only fall victim to unprotected

sex that exposes her to pregnancy by being too drunk to realize what is happening around.

Conclusion

After my study, I conclude that teen pregnancy negatively affects victims both mentally

and physically. Parents are the closest people to their teens, and they should provide guiding and

counselling to their siblings on matters concerning sex and how to avoid mistakes which can

alter their lives.

Parents should also ensure they raise their children surrounded by spiritual doctrines for

the reason that the bible a religious book has guidelines and commandment that may help teens

avoid sexual bred mistakes. By commanding children to stay away from fornication, a teen who

is raised on spiritual backgrounds and obeys the commandments will not fall victim of teen

pregnancy. The use of drug abuse is also addressed in the bible hence one following the biblical

doctrines will not have an experience of getting pregnant on alcoholic grounds.

TEENAGE PPREGNANCY 7

References

Akella, D., & Jordan, M. (2014). Impact of social and cultural factors on teenage

pregnancy. Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice, 8(1), 3.

Aubrey, J. S., Behm-Morawitz, E., & Kim, K. (2014). Understanding the effects of MTV's 16

and pregnant on adolescent girls' beliefs, attitudes, and behavioral intentions toward teen

pregnancy. Journal of health communication, 19(10), 1145-1160.

Baltazar, A., McBride, D. C., VanderWaal, C. J., & Conopio, K. (2016). Sex, Drugs and

Alcohol: What Adventist College Students Say about the Role of Parents and Religion.

Department of Family Ministries, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

Feinstein, E. L. (2014). Sexual Pollution in the Hebrew Bible. Oxford University Press.

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