| The ever increasing incidence of unintended teen pregnancy continues to be a subject of concern for nearly every segment of American society. Why certain cultures, populations and age groups engage in sexual activities that lead to unintended pregnancies remains unclear. As a practitioner in the field of teenage pregnancy prevention, the principal researcher of this study wanted to apply a scientific approach to examining whether unintended teen pregnancy is the result of a perceived difference in the way adult teens view their past communications with parents compared to their past communications with other teens on the subject of sex. The research used a sample of one-hundred, eighteen and nineteen year old adult teen parents, of which forty-eight were males and fifty-two were females. Utilizing a quantitative method of analysis, a survey questionnaire and Chi-square test were used to determine significance of perceived differences. Although results indicated some differences in perceived communications that adult teens had with parents and other teens about the subject of sex, the Null was accepted P >.05 in regards to the hypothesis tested. Adult teen parents, in general, felt that there were no significant differences in the way they perceived communications with parents about sex compared to their communications with other teens. However, the data did reveal that over ninety percent of sample respondents felt a need for increased parental communications about sexuality and relationships with the opposite sex. Participants also felt a need for more parental communications about sex at the preteen ages. |
