Male intendedness versus female intendedness at the time of teen pregnancy

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine whether male intendedness at the time of pregnancy differs from female intendedness at the time of pregnancy among couples where the female reported first pregnancy at age 19 or younger.

Methods: Data from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth, a household survey of United States women aged 15 to 44. This study included women less than 30 years of age and younger at time of interview who experienced a pregnancy before age 20. Women reported on both their feelings and how they perceived their partners feelings about the timing of the pregnancy. Unintended pregnancy was defined as pregnancy that is either mistimed or unwanted. Intended pregnancy included those that indicated the pregnancy was at the right time and those unsure.

Results: Consistent with prior research, a majority (56.7%) of pregnancies were unintended by both the woman and her partner. Only 14.8% indicated that both they and their partner felt the pregnancy was intended. Another 5.8% of women felt their pregnancy was intended but that their partner felt the pregnancy was unintended. Surprisingly, 22.5% indicated that they felt the pregnancy was unintended while their partner felt the pregnancy was intended.

Conclusions: Preliminary results suggest differences between male and female intendedness at the time of teen pregnancy. Particularly, female adolescents may be getting pregnant when they don't intend to, perhaps because of partner influence, which warrants a public health intervention addressing male pressure for early parenthood.