Teen Pregnancy in Woodbury County Stephanie Bell Ph

Teen Pregnancy in Woodbury County Stephanie Bell Ph. D. Briar Cliff University

Data Teen birth rates per 1000 <age 20 2009 2010 State of Iowa 86. 9 79. 4 Johnson 32. 7 36. 3 Linn 77. 9 68. 1 Polk 80. 9 72. 5 Dubuque 87. 1 66. 2 Blackhawk 89. 9 100. 7 Scott 115. 0 99. 0 Woodbury 129. 4 120. 5 Pottawatamie 115. 1 113. 6 avg. of 8 91. 0 84. 6 Source: Urban 8 2011 70. 8 31. 2 61. 5 69. 9 74. 0 72. 3 87. 0 89. 1 85. 4 71. 3 2012 65. 5 27. 9 54. 4 55. 0 60. 4 62. 5 79. 1 97. 7 98. 3 66. 9

Possible Reasons • Graduation Rates • Income Level • Sexual Education • Juvenile Arrests • Other?

Graduation Rates • In some communities “It is the social norm to become sexually active at an early age and not to make school a priority” (Warren, 2012, p. 1) • Sioux City (87. 1%) compared to the state of Iowa (89. 7%) is not particularly concerning • From 2009 -2013 graduation rates in Sioux City have steadily increased (Urban 8 report).

Income Level • Woodbury county below the average income of Iowa • Cost plays a factor in obtaining contraceptives (especially long term ones) (Brown, 2010; Eaton, 2011). • “Poverty is both a cause and consequence of early and unplanned pregnancy” (Brown, 2010, p. 12).

Sexual Education • Common Contraceptive (i. e. pill, condoms) • Limited knowledge (Brown, 2010; Eaton, 2011) • Minority girls less likely to be on hormonal birth control (Schumacher, 2014) • Less Common Methods (i. e. implants) • Many teens have never heard of (Brown, 2010) • If they are aware, have concerns about the effectiveness and side effects • Sioux City Schools Sexual Education • Bishop Heelan • Abstinence Only A problem? (Stanger-Hall & Hall, 2011)

Juvenile Arrests • Woodbury has the highest rate of Juvenile Arrests when compared to the Urban 8 • Higher arrest rates correlated with higher teen pregnancy rates (more free time) • Lipman (2012) looked at the effects of Boys and Girls Club in an Urban area.

Juvenile Arrests per 1000 jv's 2009 State of Iowa 27. 4 Polk 42. 6 Johnson 26. 1 Linn 27. 0 Scott 50. 3 Blackhawk 39. 8 Dubuque 27. 5 Pottawatamie 20. 5 Woodbury 56. 1 avg. of 8 36. 2 Source: Urban 8 2010 25. 3 41. 0 22. 0 24. 9 43. 8 36. 6 26. 8 19. 4 55. 2 33. 7 2011 24. 3 20. 3 22. 3 24. 7 26. 7 28. 8 33. 2 40. 0 49. 0 30. 6

Other possibilities ? ? ? Teen birth rates per 1000 <age 20 2009 2010 State of Iowa 86. 9 79. 4 Johnson 32. 7 36. 3 Linn 77. 9 68. 1 Polk 80. 9 72. 5 Dubuque 87. 1 66. 2 Blackhawk 89. 9 100. 7 Scott 115. 0 99. 0 Woodbury 129. 4 120. 5 Pottawatamie 115. 1 113. 6 avg. of 8 91. 0 84. 6 Red Text: Increases 2011 70. 8 31. 2 61. 5 69. 9 74. 0 72. 3 87. 0 89. 1 85. 4 71. 3 Blue Text: Counties with pop > 2012 65. 5 27. 9 54. 4 55. 0 60. 4 62. 5 79. 1 97. 7 98. 3 66. 9

References • Brown, S. (2010). Preventing teen unplanned pregnancy. Policy and Practice, 11 -14. • Eaton, D. et al. (2011). Youth risk behavior surveillance-United States -2011. Surveillance Summaries, 61 (4), 1 -168. • Lipman, H. (2012). Boys and girls clubs demonstrate their worth in cash. The Record. www. North. Jersey. com • Schumacher, A. (2014) Exploring the influence of body image on safer sex negotiation and risky sexual behaviors in adolescent females. University of Iowa College of Public Health. http: //www. iowapha. org/Resources/Documents/3%20 Exploring%20 the%20 Influence%20 of%20 Body%20 Image%20 on%20 Safer%20 Sex% 20 Negotiation%20 and%20 Risky%20 Sexual%20 Behaviors%20 in%20 A dolescent%20 Females. pdf • Stanger-Hall, K. & Hall, D. (2011). Abstinence-only education and teen pregnancy rates: why we need comprehensive sex education in the U. S. PLOS One, 6 (10), 1 -9. • Warren, B. (2012). Shelby County teems lead state in dropout rate, pregnancy, poverty. The Commercial Appeal.