'16 And Pregnant' Promote Or Discourage Teenage Pregnancy

“One of the major concerns of having a child or becoming a parent is to do so when you're old and mature enough to take on the responsibility. One of the problems in today's society is teenage pregnancy. The risk of pregnancy in teenagers is increasing largely. Many teenagers don't know how big of a responsibility it is to raise another human being when they themselves still have a lot of growing to do. Teenagers need to be more educated about themselves and their bodies as well as ways to protect themselves from getting pregnant if they're sexually active. Also, teenagers are more prone to risks during a pregnancy than a twenty or thirty year old woman would be. Becoming a teen parent automatically gives you a big responsibility to deal with. This means that all of your personal priorities are

“Young mothers...have done the unthinkable...engaging in sexual activity” (Friedman). The clear message is that the only way to prevent pregnancy is to stay abstinent. Friedman also points out that while the show heavily discusses the options of parenting or adoption when a teen becomes pregnant, they hardly ever mention the third option: abortion. The idea behind this is that the young women are supposed to suffer the consequences of their sexual activity, either through the public shaming, the hardships of parenting or the grief that comes with giving up your child for adoption. Women who choose abortion get the ‘easy way out’ and do not have to face the consequences of their actions. The young men in the show are not subject to the same criticism that the women are; clearly, it’s a misogyny thing! So how does the show attract so many viewers? The reason is likely because an audience is fascinated by the ‘immorality’ of these young

Teen pregnancy rates have dropped during the 1990s as a result of the fact that the authorities implemented programs meant to instruct teenagers concerning the risks associated with unprotected sex. The fact that safe sex-related programs have also experienced progress thus means that teen pregnancies should have continued to drop throughout the 2000s. "Controversies are battled out over whether or not television shows such as "16 and Pregnant" or "Teen Mom" are warnings of this phenomenon to others in the same age group, or if the premise of the shows manages to glorify young motherhood instead" (Fenster). The authorities consider that the success experienced by safe-sex programs during the 1990s means that it would be wrong for them to invest more resources in these agendas.

Teenage Pregnancies have become more prevalent in modern times due to the changing attitudes of society. Alcohol, drugs, media exposure, and peer pressure are but a few of the contributing factors that result in teenage pregnancy. Many teens find themselves pregnant due to a lack of knowledge and parental guidance. Programmes like ’16 and Pregnant’ and ‘Teen Mom’ show and may influence the impressionable audience watching these shows that by having experienced numerous sexual partners, you can be accepted amongst friends, be cool, show that you’re an adult and not a child along with many more attributes, therefore showing acceptance and encouraging the youthful viewing

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 86 percent of mothers who give birth out-of-wedlock are teenagers. MTV’s show “16 & Pregnant,” which has only been on air since June 2009, is already reflecting the rapid boom in teenage pregnancy across various cities in America. Since the early eighties MTV has been considered somewhat of a cultural phenomenon for American adolescents and its depiction of gender has a strong impact that continues to this day (Holtzman 2000). Created by Morgan J. Freeman (director of teen shows Dawson’s Creek and Laguna Beach), the show “16 & Pregnant” has been said to be guilty of exacerbating, normalizing and even glorifying teen pregnancy. Perhaps, it’s just reflecting a current social dilemma

Some teens who get pregnant at an early age like to depend on their parents way too much. In the show, there was a girl who actually had her mom watch her son every day and all day just so she could still go out and be able to party and come home late. Obviously that mom didn’t help because the teen’s mother eventually took full custody of her grandson because he wasn’t being well taken care of by his biological mother. For the parents to teach them a lesson, the parents have to let their teen kids see that raising a baby whether it is alone or not is not easy. As stated in a paragraph above, not only is it physically taking care of a baby but also financial wise. Some mother’s like to be hard on their teen’s and show them that they are not always going to be around and know it is time to grow up and a raise a baby on their

The MTV show, 16 and Pregnant is a reality TV show that depicts the life of teen mothers through pregnancy and the early months and years of their child’s life. In Teen Mom, MTV follows the moms depicted in 16 and Pregnant: Catelynn, Farah, Amber, and Maci on the challenges they face as young mothers with regards to marriages, relationships, family support, adoption, finances, education, jobs, and moving out to start their own families. Throughout the series we learn about the psychological and physical toll pregnancy has on teen moms as well as the struggles of being a teen parent and the importance of a support system in raising a child. This paper examines Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Model and research on different families such as single parents, teen parents, and incarnated parents as well as the mental health of teen moms. Although the show dramatizes the issues of being a teen mom, Teen Mom depicts a realistic portrayal of the experiences of teen moms and how they utilize their family and other professional resources, such as therapy to cope with the challenges they face in relationships, adoption, single parenting, incarceration, and family conflicts.

Teen pregnancy is a growing epidemic in the United States. Teen girls are becoming pregnant at an alarming rate, with a lot of the pregnancies planned. With television shows broadcasting shows such as “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom”, it is giving teenage girls the idea that it is alright to have premarital sex and become pregnant. It is in a way condoning teen pregnancy.

Another source shows that the show is a form of birth control to some girls. Some believe that what they see the moms go through is just another indication of why they shouldn’t become pregnant. Some things shown on the show will make you not want to become pregnant at such a young age. Still having to go through high school and deal with pregnancy hormones is a lot to handle. Then, having to deal with the baby’s father walking out is very stressful. Most young men who get young girls pregnant flee when they’re told the news. The Parents Television Council criticizes the show and believe they’re intent is wrong.

While focusing on this study she also points out that MTV focuses on the girl’s relationships with the baby’s father or even the girl’s parents, made it more effective for girls not to want to end up like the girls on the show.

Popular media submits many teens to sexual content and influences their views on subjects such as teenage pregnancy. The article Evaluating the Impact of MTV’s 16 and Pregnant on Teen Viewers’ Attitudes About Teen Pregnancy takes a closer look at the relationship between the viewers of the show and their attitudes towards teen pregnancy. Three major weaknesses found after the review of the study are listed as follows; The study has several confounding variables, the sample group is rather small and taken from a single state within the US, and lastly, it makes claims without having sufficient evidence from its own findings as well as other studies. However, the way the study was conducted is relatively very

When it comes to the topic of teen pregnancy, some of us will readily agree that shows like “Teen Mom OG” and “16 and Pregnant” promotes teen pregnancy. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of do these types of shows promote or discourage teens across the country from becoming teen moms. Whereas some are convinced that “Teen Mom OG” and “16 and Pregnant” have reduced teen pregnancy rates, others maintain that the producers have made stars out of these teen moms, with financial compensation most teen moms would not receive. But the deeper problem was once “16 and Pregnant” was successful, they did a spin off show called “Teen Mom OG.”

During the teenage years, there are raging hormones, social acceptance conflicts, developing feelings for the opposite sex, the list can go on for days! The older population tends to have opinions about MTV’s hit show, 16 and pregnant. Some critics say it promotes unprotected sex and has girls thinking it is acceptable to be pregnant young. 16 and pregnant has its flaws, but overall it shows the important message that pregnancy is hard, no matter the age but especially so young. These mothers suffer from depression, social unacceptance, and often times bullying. The t.v show proves how difficult it is to have a child so young, and overall tends to discourage it.

There is a great debate on whether or not mass media has an influence on teenage pregnancy. A study done by the RAND Corporation shows that teens are twice as likely to have sex or engage in sexual acts if they see similar sexual behavior in the media. Many objects in the media that involve sex target teens. Reality TV shows and teen dramas often portray the "cool kids" as the ones who are having sex (Chandra).Today’s teens are highly influenced by what they see in the media and this can change their behavior and choices. Some will argue that the media doesn’t influence teenagers, but how can we be sure of that? Today, the media portray teen pregnancy in movies, television shows, magazines, music, news reports, and books. The problems

"In 2014 there were 24.2 births for every 1,000 adolescent females ages 15-19 or 249,078 born to this age group."”In 1991, the U.S. teen birth rate was 61.8 births for every 1,000 adolescent females, compared with 24.2 births for every 1,000 adolescent females in 2014. Still, the U.S. teen birth rate is higher than that of many other developed countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.” us has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the world. There are a lot of teens pregnancy based shows and movies such as teen mom, the secret life of the American teenager, 16 and pregnant, for keeps and how to deal.Providing the morning after pill is almost as encouraging them to have unprotected sex because they think the pill fix everything, this leads to an increase of sexually transmitted diseases such as Chlamydia and gonorrhea, this can also affect their education.