Andrew L. Cherry Jr. - Böcker

Nearly eight out of ten homeless and runaway young girls between the ages of 13 and 20 have given birth to at least one child. Social Bonds and Teen Pregnancy reports on a recent study of pregnant and parenting runaway and homeless girls found on American streets. Authors LaWanda Ravoira and Andrew Cherry examine the factors that shape these girls' decisions and life experiences, including family, individual, and community bonds; religiosity; parental and individual attitudes toward premarital sex; tolerance for minor deviance; feelings of self-worth; and sense of power over one's own life. Contrary to prior research, which characterizes sexually active girls as dependent or victimized, this study suggests that girls who have had sexual intercourse before age sixteen are more mature and in control of their lives than their peers.Social Bond theory is used to provide a framework for thinking about the development of prevention and intervention programs for at-risk girls, as well as for the development of national policies to address the long-term negative consequences of adolescent pregnancy and parenting. Ravoira and Cherry provide an overview of youth services, along with an appraisal of the impact of current government policies, in order to highlight gaps in services at the national and local levels. A review of the antecedents of teen pregnancy and a critique of the theoretical literature suggest numerous psychosocial reasons for the growing phenomenon of earlier pregnancy and parenting. Excerpts from and summaries of actual case studies and tape-recorded personal accounts of teenage mothers bring the research to life.

This work is an attempt to begin the process of closing the theoretical gap in our knowledge about ourselves, challenging the current thought on human development and behavior. A psychosocial/biological approach is used to explore the influence of instinct on human nature. Models to assess behavior and to develop individual and socially therapeutic interventions are proposed.

Teenage pregnancy is a worldwide problem that accompanies the initiation of sexual activity at increasingly younger ages. This unique reference resource provides students with cross-cultural comparisons of the issues associated with teenage pregnancy. How do different cultures deal with this problem? How has the problem changed in recent years? What programs have been initiated to try to control the problem? Answers to these and other questions for fifteen different countries are explored in detail to give a global perspective and to challenge students to think about how the problem should be addressed.The fifteen countries represented have been carefully chosen to represent the different regions of the world. Student researchers can use this resource to study the similarities that cross national and regional boundaries despite the varying needs and experiences of adolescents around the world. By understanding the history of teenage pregnancy and how it is viewed both socially and politically in each of the countries, students can come to an understanding of how it affects the world, what its dangers are, and how we can come up with a comprehensive strategy for preventing and coping with it everywhere.

With reports spanning the developed and developing worlds, this book surveys factors influencing childhood pregnancy. Brings international perspective to the challenges and needs of very young mothers, and the diversity of social and professional responses.

International Handbook of Adolescent Pregnancy

This comprehensive reference uses an ecological perspective to sort out the complex mix of biological, psychological, social, and other factors influencing adolescent health as well as shaping professional responses to the needs of adolescents. Describing critical concerns at the global level and innovative strategies from selected countries, the book urges readers to develop and support practices and policies to enhance optimal youth development. Expert coverage centers on key areas: the global state of adolescent health and development, adolescent health issues and public health answers, making health systems more responsive to youth, and improving school health services. And bedrock themes such as social determinants of health, young people’s right to health care, and health and gender disparities are discussed throughout these chapters. Included among the topics:•The epidemiology of adolescent health•Adolescent sexual health and sexuality education•Restorative justice and the mental wellbeing of adolescents•Critical issues in adolescent nutrition: needs and recommendations•Towards an adolescent competent workforce•Pairing children with health services: thechanging role of school health services in the 21st centuryThe International Handbook on Adolescent Health and Development is essential to medical schools, public schools, and college libraries; teaching faculty; graduate and post-graduate students in public health, medicine, social work, other behavioral sciences and health disciplines (e.g., nursing, allied heath); as well as practitioners interested in better orienting their services to the health needs of adolescents.