Ri Sk Factors For Adolescent Premarital Pregnancy in Awassa
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Date
1996-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Premarital sexual behavior, pregnancy and childbearing a re
recently reputed as serious social problems of teenagers in the
developed and developing countr ies . Al though results of the
very 1 imi ted surveys conducted in some of the Sub-Saharan
Africa countr1es reveal that the pregnancy and fertility of
unmarried adolescents have been increasing recently; the risk
factors are not clearly examined and need to be further
identified.
In Ethiopia lack of adequate survey data on premarital
pregnancy and fertility have restrained the specific patterns
from being seen clearly. However , there are some other indirect
evidences that sho\-! their increasing t e ndencies . Thus, this
research attempts t o assess the extent to Io!h i ch adolescent
premarital pr egnancy has pervaded 1n the urban setting
(Awassa). It also examines the relationship between adolescent
premarital pregnancy a nd the socio- econom1c , biological,
behavioral, and fa mi ly characteristics .
In order to analyze and discuss the relationship between
the risk of having premari t al pregnancy and its determinants,
cross-sectional survey wa s conducted in Awassa . Once the data
have been collected, the univariate , bivariate and multivariate
relati onships I.ere investigated . The major statistical too l
applied at different stages of the analysis is the logistic
reg ression model .The results of the multivariate analysis suggest that use
of contraception at initiation of premarital intercourse,
communication with close friends and relatives, current marital
status, parents ' schooling, agreement to have been engaged in
first premarital sex, educational achievement, knowledge of the
pregnancy risk period of the menstrual cycle and family
rel i gion at age 14 are the important predictors of the risk of
having premari t al pregnancy among sexually active adolescents
in Awassa town .
Finally, the findings disclose that family life education
and access to modern methods of contraception are the key
strategic components for programmatic intervention ; and
secondary and beyond school girls are the main target groups in
programs aim at reducing the present high incidence of
p r emarital pregnancy and fer t ility in urban setti ng of Ethiopia
(Awassa) .
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Premarital Pregnancy in Awassa