UC researcher finds pregnant teens feel self conscious

Graham Robinson

22 May 2008: University of Canberra researcher Iain Hay says recent research has identified that pregnant teens feel self conscious under public scrutiny.

 “I undertook a research project to understand the complexity of mother-hood and teenage pregnancy. One of the interesting comments made by young teenage mothers is that they are very conscious about how society judges them.

“In fact in some cases, young mothers will only go shopping late at night so they are not seen by others pushing a pram.

“These teenagers will re-enter the school system as they consider their future and that of their child. It is not true that teenage pregnancy is on the rise as perceived by society, in fact the numbers have remained static since the 1970s,” said Mr Hay.

Education Lecturer Iain Hay

Mr Hay believes teenage mothering continues to be a hotly and frequently, albeit often narrowly studied topic. Social commentators, the media, politicians and numerous governments over time have drawn attention to the apparent negative consequences of teenage motherhood on young women.

This research is the first step in developing a framework for student welfare policy and guidelines for teenage mothers in the education system. Mr Hay says his research has also highlighted the need for early sex education, which can have a marked difference on the number of teenagers who fall pregnant.

“The belief by society is that these young women are bad, or have done something wrong.”

“The reality is very different” he said. “In many cases these girls have fallen pregnant following their first sexual encounter.”

“Many of these young women also lack a voice or agency to assist them this leaves them feeling disengaged from their friends, school and society.

“The study will identify, explore and critically examine the complexities surrounding these young women as parents and as students in order to increase the retention rates of teenage mothers in education. It is essential that we understand the range of issues facing young mothers themselves, and by those supporting their formal education in an attempt to reveal the implications for education in Australia,” said Mr Hay.