). An exploratory research study found that pregnant teenaged girls had a lower self concept than non pregnant controls in relation to moral, family, and social dimensions (Paik, 1992, pp. 93 111). Another research study found that teenaged girls who are most likely to become pregnant are characterized by (1) low self esteem, (2) an external locus of control, (3) an unfavorable attitude toward school, (4) low educational expectations, and (5) low religiosity (Plotnick, 1992, p. 801). A research study conducted by Schamess (1993, pp. 432 434) found that pregnant teenagers generally held negative attitudes toward relationships with men in their lives, but idealized the potential of a relationship between a child and themselves as a mother. Schamess (1993, p. 434) concluded that many teenaged girls perceive motherhood "as a gratifying and 'safe' way to give and receive love and may represent an attempted solution to problems related to sexuality." Records (1993, p. 333) found that the frequency with which the pregnancy of a sister or close friend was identified as a significant life event was the same for both pregnant and non pregnant teenagers; however, where 84.6 percent of pregnant
teenagers perceived such an event as positive, only 53.8 percent of non pregnant teenagers held positive perceptions of the event.
Teenaged pregnancy frequently occurs in situations wherein the teenager has become disaffected from her family (Tennyson, 1991, p. 84). In such instances, stressors other than teenaged pregnancy have created an imbalance in the family behavioral system that contributes to the development of an environment wherein teenaged pregnancy is more likely to occur.
Holden, Nelson, Velasquez, and Ritchie (1993, pp. 559 563) examined the effects of teenaged pregnancy on the family within the context of a psychosocial model. These researchers found that teenagers who became pregnant developed low levels of perceived self wor...