1. Latina adolescents' perceptions of their male partners' influences on childbearing: findings from a qualitative study in California.
- Author
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Schwartz SL, Brindis CD, Ralph LJ, and Biggs MA
- Subjects
- Adolescent, Attitude to Health ethnology, California epidemiology, Cultural Characteristics, Female, Hispanic or Latino psychology, Humans, Male, Pregnancy, Qualitative Research, Socioeconomic Factors, United States epidemiology, Young Adult, Hispanic or Latino statistics & numerical data, Maternal Age, Pregnancy in Adolescence ethnology, Sex Education methods, Sexual Partners
- Abstract
Teenage births among Latina women living in the USA remain higher than any other racial/ethnic group. This study explored the role that male partners play in the occurrence of pregnancy and their influence on teenage mothers' future plans in a sample of women pregnant with their first child. Qualitative analysis revealed that partners played a significant role in the use of contraception, timing and desire for pregnancy and young women's post-pregnancy plans for education, work and childrearing. Men's older age, concerns about contraceptive use and fertility, reluctance to use condoms, and readiness for parenthood put their partners at increased risk for pregnancy. More acculturated men were supportive of young women's educational goals in many cases, whereas less acculturated males subscribed to more rigid gender roles which required that their partners remain at home after the birth of their child. These findings have important implications for programmes that seek to reduce teenage pregnancy in the US Latino population.
- Published
- 2011
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