Tweets, Likes, and SIMS: A systematic review of best practices in communication strategies for teen pregnancy prevention

Background: Adolescent pregnancy prevention programs have much to celebrate, yet, compared to other developed nations, the United States leads the pack with the highest rate of teen pregnancy. Teen pregnancy remains a significant problem due to its negative impact on infant health outcomes, cognitive development of children, educational achievement of mothers and children, and family income. To address this pervasive issue programs must address adolescent knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors about sexuality by developing novel interventions and using cutting-edge modes of communication.

Methods: With the goal of developing a marketing plan for a social marketing campaign, a systematic review of published literature and program materials was conducted to 1. understand adolescent perspectives on sexuality, contraception, and barriers to use of contraceptives and 2. understand adolescent needs, expectations, aspirations, drivers/motivators, communication behaviors and lifestyles.

Results: Salient findings reveal that interventions should reinforce key motivators for teens such as individualism, self-expression, instant gratification, multi-tasking, honesty in messages, mutual respect and altruism. Strategies should be designed to address barriers to contraceptive use, consisting of myths/misconceptions, lack of general knowledge, limited accessibility, and monetary costs. The most effective communication channels for reaching teens include social networking sites, mobile device texting platform, interactive games, and lastly websites.

Discussion: Given the tech-savvy, information-laden teen population, developing marketing strategies that consider teen motivators, media usage, and common modes of communication is key to the success of a campaign. Campaigns should capitalize on the power of teens and engage them in the development and implementation of an intervention.