Adolescent pregnancy in the United States: Not a minority issue

Abstract

Adolescent pregnancy is on the rise in the United States. This fact is often stressed in the media with an emphasis on minority cultures. It is true that the United States ranks seventh in the industrialized world in the incidence of teen pregnancy and the highest incidence is found among black adolescents of low socioeconomic status. However, care must be taken in linking early childbearing with race. The persistence of poverty, joblessness, and lack of hope for the future are recurring themes in the quest for understanding the phenomenon of adolescent pregnancy, and these factors are increasingly being experienced by white as well as black adolescents.