Birgisson, et al. (2015). Preventing Unintended Pregnancy: The Contraceptive CHOICE Project in Review. Journal of Women's Health (15409996) , 24 (5), 349.
The objective of this study was to study the effect of contraceptives on the prevalence of unintended pregnancies within the St. Louis area through the removal cost, education, and barriers to access of effective contraceptives. The researchers adopted a cohort approach on over 9000 respondents aged between 14 and 35 years. The participants in the study were given contraceptives of their choice free for the two years that the study lasted. The study found that using contraceptives reduced the rates of teenage pregnancy among the studied group. The strength of this study was the fact that it used a large sample size, which was useful in eliminating bias. However, the study focused on a group of respondents outside the teenage criterion.
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Brown & Guthrie (2010). Why don't teenagers use contraception? A qualitative interview study. European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care , 15 (3), 197-204.
The researchers sought to experiment the causes of unintended pregnancies among teenagers and the reasons that cause reduced desire for them to use contraceptives. The study used teenage respondents between fifteen and twenty years of age presenting for surgical abortion in North England. The researchers interviewed respondents concerning their perception of contraceptives. They found that women did not prefer contraceptives because of pressure from men not to do so, the influence of alcohol and substance abuse, forgetfulness, lack of thought, and carelessness. The advantage of this study is that the researchers adopt a comprehensive grounded theory framework for analysis of results. However, the researchers collected data from only twenty-two respondents, which would make the findings biased.
Falk (2010). Teenagers´ unintended pregnancies and contraception (Doctoral dissertation, Linköping University Electronic Press).
The researcher sought to establish the risk groups of teenage pregnancy as well as the reasons that cause contraceptive failure among the individuals. They conducted a mixed methods study to determine if the teenagers were likely to seek emergency contraceptives and the factors that would risk early pregnancies. The research found that despite the existence of contraceptives, teenage girls were still at risk of pregnancy because of other factors such as substance abuse among others. The mixed methods approach to research ensured that the researcher combined qualitative and quantitative data that made the analysis thorough.
Forrest & Samara. (2009). Impact of publicly funded contraceptive services on unintended pregnancies and implications for.. Family Planning Perspectives
, 28 (5), 188.
The researchers studied the effect of contraceptive usage among teenagers in the US concerning the prevalence of pregnancies. They conducted a cohort study in which more than 2000 respondents aged between fourteen and twenty-five years presenting in abortion clinics across the nation were recruited. The study found that using contraceptives reduced the rate of teenage pregnancy. While the study’s strength is its relatively large sample of respondents, they did not focus solely on teenagers.
Kuhn (2008). An EPICC Oversight: Why The Current Battle For Access To Contraception Will Not Help Reduce Unintended Pregnancy In the U.S. Health Matrix: Journal Of Law-Medicine , 17 347.
This study is a qualitative explanatory one in which the author seeks to explain why adopting more contraceptives might not solve the issue of unwanted teenage pregnancies. He cites the fact that contraceptives have been a legal right for all women since 1965, yet teenage pregnancies are still and issue to the US. Coupled with factors such as abuse, substance usage, and improper sex education, the author argues, teenage pregnancies are still a problem that requires immediate intervention. The advantage of this study is that it appraises literature from other scholars and determines their findings. However, the lack of experimentation makes the results less appealing compared to the experimental ones.
Relationship between Empirical Evidence and Practice Wisdom
The reviewed studies provide critical insight on the need for social workers to try different approaches to problem solving. It appears that social workers should combine efforts with parents in ensuring that they fight the issue of teenage pregnancy since it appears that most of the teenagers are unable to make informed decisions about the prevention of unwanted pregnancies. Therefore, the existence of contraceptives alone may or may not work.
What the research indicates is the common knowledge that contraceptives of any type have the ability to reduce the rates of unwanted pregnancies. In fact, some studies suggest that contraceptives have resulted in the reduction of the incidence of teenage pregnancies. However, some argue otherwise. What most people did not know about contraceptives and their contribution to teenage pregnancy is the fact that without proper education on sexual behavior and support from different groups, contraceptives might fail to cause the desired outcomes.
Overall, studies on the role of contraceptives in the reduction of teenage pregnancies give mixed findings. Therefore, it would be challenging for social workers and related groups in Texas to adopt contraceptives as the only approach to reducing the prevalence of unwanted teenage pregnancies in the state since empirical evidence does not guarantee success. What research reviewed in this study does not cover is the relationship between risk factors to early pregnancies and their relationship with contraceptive usage in the US.
References
Birgisson, N. E., Zhao, Q., Secura, G. M., Madden, T., & Peipert, J. F. (2015). Preventing Unintended Pregnancy: The Contraceptive CHOICE Project in Review. Journal Of Women's Health (15409996) , 24 (5), 349.
Brown, S., & Guthrie, K. (2010). Why don't teenagers use contraception? A qualitative interview study. European Journal Of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care , 15 (3), 197-204.
Falk, G. (2010). Teenagers´ unintended pregnancies and contraception (Doctoral dissertation, Linköping University Electronic Press).
Forrest, J. D., & Samara, R. (2009). Impact of publicly funded contraceptive services on unintended pregnancies and implications for.. Family Planning Perspectives , 28 (5), 188.
Kuhn, C. G. (2008). An EPICC Oversight: Why The Current Battle For Access To Contraception Will Not Help Reduce Unintended Pregnancy In the U.S. Health Matrix: Journal Of Law-Medicine , 17 347.
