Risking the Future Adolescent Sexuality, Pregnancy, and Childbearing (1987) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
8 Priorities for Data Collection and Research
8 Priorities for Data Collection and Research
Pages 231-260
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 231... ...
We have found that, over the past several years, researchers have made significant advances in knowledge about teenage sexuality, prep y, and parenting, yet, as we have repeatedly indicated, many questions remain unanswered, and they suggest pnonties for fixture data collection and research. Essential tO frarn~ng an agenda for research is an underlying concept of the applications of increased knowledge.
|
From page 232... ...
The remaining sections of this chapter present the panel's recommendations for Data collection, research on adolescent sexual and fertility behavior, program evaluation, and expenmentation. PRIORITIES FOR DATA COLLECTION The panel recommends that data systems that monitor fertility anlfertilityrelated behaviors be maintained and strengthened.
|
From page 233... ...
statelevel repomng systems, and data collected by service providers. Lar~e-Scaie Surveys Major large-scale surveys that provide cross-sectional information on aspects of adolescent sexual and fertility behavior include general populalion surveys, health and ferdlit:y surveys, and youth surreys.
|
From page 234... ...
In addition, because of its broad coverage of the population, the decennial census frequently provides the basis for the sampling designs of other data collection acti~rites Unfortunately, however, census data are not detailed in many areas of interest tO researchers studying adolescent sexual and fertility behavior. For example, they do not contain information on sexual activity, contraception, pregnancy, and abortion.
|
From page 235... ...
Health and Fertility Surveys Ongoing data collection activities related to health and fertility behavior either are or can be made extremely useful for research on adolescents. These surveys include information on sexual activity, contraception, pregnancy, abortion, and childbeanng, and they permit analyses of fertility patterns, infertility, reproductive health, contraception, and fertility intentions.
|
From page 236... ...
Questions concerning the sexual and fertility behavior of adult and adolescent males, however, were not included in previous cycles. Should such items be ad-deaf ~ the next Cycle, they would significantly expand available knowledge of male attitudes and behavior.
|
From page 237... ...
environmental factors influencing adolescent sexual and fertility behavior. Youth Surveys Other ongoing surveys have less direct focus on adolescent fertility-related behavior but are valuable sources of data on young adults.
|
From page 238... ...
to birth outcomes. Th=d, better ident~ficatlon of racial and ethnic groups could also expand research linking special population subgroups to birth outcomes.
|
From page 239... ...
Since 1981, the federal government has not provided fiends for monitoring family planning clinic performance, which includes the characteristics of services pronders, service components, and patients and the costs of care. The latest available data are for 1983, and these were collected by the Alan Guttmacher Institute with private support.
|
From page 240... ...
PRIORITIES FOR RESEARCH ON ADOLESCENT SEXUAL AND FERTILITY BEHAVIOR The parcel recommends the continued support of a broal-basel research program on adolescent sexuality ar:diertility to enhance understanding of the causes and consequences of these behaviors and to inform policy and program levelopment. Over the past decade, research has added significantly to the knowIedge of trends, correlates, antecedents, and consequences of adolescent sexual and fertility behavior.
|
From page 241... ...
The histoncal time, the ecological setting, and the developmental characteristics and accumulated life experiences of individual adolescer~ts are all potentially important factors influencing the process of choice and its outcomes. Accordingly, the panel's recommendations for future research on adolescent sexual and fertility behavior are organized under four domains of antecedents and outcomes: individuals, families, commuruties, and society.
|
From page 242... ...
Most of those that have are based on small samples and are concentrated predorn3nantly on obstetncal issues, such as gestation, birthweight, etc. More research is needed on the factors influencing sexual decision making and the developmental effects of choices concerning the initiation of sexual activity, contraceptive use, and pregnancy resolution among very young teenagers.
|
From page 243... ...
It appears that in some cases boys overreport sexual activity and underreport pregnancy and childbeanug. Beyond the difficulties of obtaining data, however, the lack of research on mates reflects the fact that policy makers, service providers, parents, and teenagers themselves have traditionally regarded adolescent pregnancy and childbeanng as a female problem.
|
From page 244... ...
Studies of the antecedents and consequences of adolescent sexual activity have focused almost exclusively on social, educational, and economic factors influencing the initiation of sexual intercourse, contraceptive use, pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases. Few studies have examined the psychosocial antecedents and consequences of sexual activity among teenagers.
|
From page 245... ...
Research examining the role of families and individual family members in adolescent sexual decision making is limited. Most studies ~ this area have focused on mother-daughter relationships.
|
From page 246... ...
A growing body of research has addressed the health and development~ consequences for children of having an adolescent mother. Accumulated findings suggest that these youngsters face increased risks for their OWI1 life outcomes, including cognitive development, health status and health behavior, educational attainment, and sexual and fertility behavior.
|
From page 247... ...
. Communities Community factors also undoubtedly affect emerging patterns of adolescent sexual and fertility behavior, yet knowledge of how neighborhood environments and community institutions (for example schools and churches)
|
From page 248... ...
Society At the macro level, society-through its government agencies, the courts, and the social, economic, and cultural milieus also influences the process of adolescent sexual decision making and its outcomes. Changes in American society over the past two decades, including changing patterns of mamage and family structure, shifts in employment and unemployment, the evolving role and status of women, the changing youth culture, and the growing dominance of the media have altered the context of adolescent pregnancy and childbearing.
|
From page 249... ...
The extensive exposure of the American public to the media and the greater liberality of programming and advertising since the 1960s have been documented elsewhere. Less weD-documented, however, are whether and to what extent these changes in media exposure and content have affected changing pattems of adolescent sexual and fertility behavior, whether they simply reflect more pervasive changes in values, attitudes, and behavior that have become accepted throughout society, or both.
|
From page 250... ...
Federal and state-level funding agencies should be urged to set aside adequate supportfor evaluation research, and the research community should be urged to take a more active role in designing and implementing these studies. Although evaluation research methods have become quite sophisticated over the past two decades, they are frequently not used in studying the effects of adolescent pregnancy programs.
|
From page 251... ...
Another purpose is process evaluation: to monitor how a particular program works and to document program models. Service providers are often less interested in evaluation for its capability to measure outcomes than for its capability to provide information for program improvement.
|
From page 252... ...
For example, interventions to encourage delay in sexual initiation must measure changes In sexual behavior among their client populations; programs to improve school performance need to measure not only changes in academic achievement and school retention, but also changes in sexual and fertility behavior. Several other issues concerning outcome measures are also important.
|
From page 253... ...
Where adequate measures do not exist, new instruments should be developed for use by evaluators in a variety of settings, involving adolescents of different genders, ages, races, and other relevant background characteristics. Third, with regard to several specific issues, new measures are needed: (1)
|
From page 254... ...
When it cannot, evaluators should be encouraged to develop innovative research designs and sampling techniques to enhance representativeness. An issue of particular concern in studying program effects on very young adolescents is the need to obtain parental consent for their participation.
|
From page 255... ...
In addition, they need to develop aggressive and innovative approaches to follow up and track clients after they leave a program. Irzlen~ening Vanables As a part of the research design for a program evaluation, independent, dependent, and intervening variables and their potential reiationship should be clearly specified.
|
From page 256... ...
For example, to conclude that a program was successful in preventing or delaying subsequent births on the basis of measurement at one year after a first birth probably overstates its effectiveness, since we know that a high proportion of repeat pregnancies and births occur in the second year. I'orlgitu~inal research is admittedly expensive and complex, yet follow-ups of selected samples of program participants over time may yield valuable information concerning the duration of program effects for particular subgroups of the target population.
|
From page 257... ...
Too few scholars of adolescent development are also sophisticated in program evaluation methods. Because academic incentives discourage program research, too few are able and welling to assist service providers in the design and implementation of evaluation components for adolescent pregnancy programs.
|
From page 258... ...
In addition, new approaches to encourage delay of sexual intercourse should be designed, implemented, and evaluated. Moreover, farther effort is needed to explore ways of providing birth control information to young teenagers, including information on contraception, without making it difficult for those who choose not to initiate intercourse to maintain more traditional attitudes and behavior.
|
From page 259... ...
Finally, parents are responsible for the financial support of they children, yet many fathers of children born to adolescent mothers, especially teenagers, have not assumed economic responsibility for their families. Further efforts are needed to develop effective means of child support enforcement.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.