IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v131y2015icp1-9.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Is education the best contraception: The case of teenage pregnancy in England?

Author

Listed:
  • Girma, Sourafel
  • Paton, David

Abstract

This paper examines potential explanations for recent declines in teenage pregnancy in England. We estimate panel data models of teenage conception, birth and abortion rates from regions in England. Although point estimates are consistent with the promotion of long acting reversible contraception (LARC) having a negative impact on teenage pregnancy rates, the effects are generally small and statistically insignificant. In contrast, improvements in educational achievement and, to a lesser extent, increases in the non-white proportion of the population are associated with large and statistically significant reductions in teenage pregnancy.

Suggested Citation

  • Girma, Sourafel & Paton, David, 2015. "Is education the best contraception: The case of teenage pregnancy in England?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 1-9.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:131:y:2015:i:c:p:1-9
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.02.040
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027795361500132X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.02.040?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Joseph J. Sabia, 2006. "Does sex education affect adolescent sexual behaviors and health?," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(4), pages 783-802.
    2. Akers, Aletha Y. & Muhammad, Melvin R. & Corbie-Smith, Giselle, 2011. ""When you got nothing to do, you do somebody": A community's perceptions of neighborhood effects on adolescent sexual behaviors," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 72(1), pages 91-99, January.
    3. Girma, Sourafel & Paton, David, 2011. "The impact of emergency birth control on teen pregnancy and STIs," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 373-380, March.
    4. Amy Adamczyk & Jacob Felson, 2008. "Fetal Positions: Unraveling the Influence of Religion on Premarital Pregnancy Resolution," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 89(1), pages 17-38, March.
    5. Santelli, J.S. & Lindberg, L.D. & Finer, L.B. & Singh, S., 2007. "Explaining recent declines in adolescent pregnancy in the United States: The contribution of abstinence and improved contraceptive use," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 97(1), pages 150-156.
    6. Melissa S. Kearney & Phillip B. Levine, 2009. "Subsidized Contraception, Fertility, and Sexual Behavior," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 91(1), pages 137-151, February.
    7. repec:taf:jnlbes:v:30:y:2012:i:2:p:312-325 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. William N. Evans & Wallace E. Oates & Robert M. Schwab & William N. Evans & Wallace E. Oates & Robert M. Schwab, 2004. "Measuring Peer Group Effects: A Study of Teenage Behavior," Chapters, in: Environmental Policy and Fiscal Federalism, chapter 13, pages 232-257, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    9. George A. Akerlof & Janet L. Yellen & Michael L. Katz, 1996. "An Analysis of Out-of-Wedlock Childbearing in the United States," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 111(2), pages 277-317.
    10. Paton, David, 2002. "The economics of family planning and underage conceptions," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 207-225, March.
    11. Rashad, Inas & Kaestner, Robert, 2004. "Teenage sex, drugs and alcohol use: problems identifying the cause of risky behaviors," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 493-503, May.
    12. Sourafel Girma & David Paton, 2006. "Matching estimates of the impact of over‐the‐counter emergency birth control on teenage pregnancy," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(9), pages 1021-1032, September.
    13. Thomas Stratmann, 2008. "Abortion Access and Risky Sex Among Teens: Parental Involvement Laws and Sexually Transmitted Diseases," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 24(1), pages 2-21, May.
    14. Gerald S. Oettinger, 1999. "The Effects of Sex Education on Teen Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(3), pages 606-635, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jesman Chintsanya & Monica Magadi & Gloria Likupe, 2021. "A Multilevel Analysis of Risk and Protective Factors for Adolescent Childbearing in Malawi," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-19, August.
    2. Andrew J Baxter, Mr & Dundas, Ms Ruth & Popham, Dr Frank & Craig, Dr Peter, 2021. "How effective was England's teenage pregnancy strategy? A comparative analysis of high-income countries," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 270(C).
    3. Raquel Pires & Anabela Araújo-Pedrosa & Joana Pereira & Maria Cristina Canavarro, 2021. "How Can Unintended Pregnancies Be Prevented among Adolescents Who Engaged in Sexual Intercourse at Earlier Ages? The Role of Female Education and Partner Age Difference," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-17, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sourafel Girma & David Paton, 2013. "Does Parental Consent for Birth Control Affect Underage Pregnancy Rates? The Case of Texas," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 50(6), pages 2105-2128, December.
    2. Colin Cannonier, 2012. "State abstinence education programs and teen birth rates in the US," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 53-75, March.
    3. Kearney, Melissa S. & Levine, Phillip B., 2015. "Investigating recent trends in the U.S. teen birth rate," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 15-29.
    4. David Paton & Stephen Bullivant & Juan Soto, 2020. "The impact of sex education mandates on teenage pregnancy: International evidence," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(7), pages 790-807, July.
    5. Girma, Sourafel & Paton, David, 2011. "The impact of emergency birth control on teen pregnancy and STIs," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 373-380, March.
    6. Colin Cannonier, 2009. "State Abstinence Education Programs and Teen Fertility in the U.S," Departmental Working Papers 2009-14, Department of Economics, Louisiana State University.
    7. Mariana Gerstenblüth & Zuleika Ferre & Máximo Rossi & Patricia Triunfo, 2009. "Impacto de la maternidad adolescente en los logros educativos," Documentos de Trabajo (working papers) 0509, Department of Economics - dECON.
    8. Melissa Schettini Kearney & Phillip B. Levine, 2012. "Explaining Recent Trends in the U.S. Teen Birth Rate," NBER Working Papers 17964, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Joseph J. Sabia, 2007. "Early Adolescent Sex and Diminished School Attachment: Selection or Spillovers?," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 74(1), pages 239-268, July.
    10. Edward Castronova, 2004. "Social Norms and Sexual Activity in U.S. High Schools," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 39(4).
    11. repec:bla:ecinqu:v:51:y:2013:i:3:p:1682-1695 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Madeline Zavodny & David Paton, 2006. "Teenage Pregnancy Risk: the impact of parental involvement for contraception," Occasional Papers 18, Industrial Economics Division.
    13. Paton, David & Wright, Liam, 2017. "The effect of spending cuts on teen pregnancy," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 135-146.
    14. Jennifer Trudeau, 2016. "The role of new media on teen sexual behaviors and fertility outcomes—the case of 16 and Pregnant," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 82(3), pages 975-1003, January.
    15. Spencer, Melissa K., 2024. "Safer sex? The effect of AIDS risk on birth rates," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    16. Fischer, Stefanie & Royer, Heather & White, Corey, 2017. "The Impacts of Reduced Access to Abortion and Family Planning Services: Evidence from Texas," IZA Discussion Papers 10920, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Myers, Caitlin & Ladd, Daniel, 2020. "Did parental involvement laws grow teeth? The effects of state restrictions on minors’ access to abortion," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    18. Andrew Beauchamp, 2016. "Abortion Costs, Separation, and Non-marital Childbearing," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 182-196, June.
    19. Fischer, Stefanie & Royer, Heather & White, Corey, 2018. "The impacts of reduced access to abortion and family planning services on abortions, births, and contraceptive purchases," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 167(C), pages 43-68.
    20. Pfeifer, Gregor & Stockburger, Mirjam, 2023. "The morning after: Prescription-free access to emergency contraceptive pills," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    21. Phillip B. Levine, 2001. "The Sexual Activity and Birth-Control Use of American Teenagers," NBER Chapters, in: Risky Behavior among Youths: An Economic Analysis, pages 167-218, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:131:y:2015:i:c:p:1-9. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.