Risk and protective factors for adolescent pregnancy among girls in Letlhakane village.

Abstract

Adolescent pregnancy is a global health issue, generating problems such as adolescent maternal deaths, school disruption, and limited job prospects for adolescent girls. This study examined the risk and protective factors for adolescent pregnancy among adolescent girls in Letlhakane village, using the social-ecological model. The model indicates that behavior is a result of multiple implicating factors. Adopting the major underlying notion of the social-ecological model, the issue of adolescent pregnancy was not interpreted as a result of individual behavior only, however, as an outcome of combined implications of individual, family, peer and dyad, community and institutional factors. As a qualitative study, respondents were selected using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were used as data gathering instruments. To analyze the data collected, thematic analysis was employed. Findings revealed that there is non-use of contraceptives; lack of knowledge about SRH issues and the use of contraceptives among individual adolescents. There is also lack of parental education and guidance on sexuality which resulted in adolescents being prone to peer pressure and intergenerational sex. Some cultures tolerate early childbearing and their living set-up led to early sexual debut of adolescents. Laws and policies were said to be ineffective because laws are not implemented and cases of sexual abuse are not reported. To tackle this issue of adolescent pregnancy, respondents proposed that adolescents should use contraceptives; parents should be involved in the sexual lives of their adolescents so as to provide them with education on sexuality. Stakeholder collaboration was also emphasized and enforcement of the law. Based on these findings, practitioners, policy makers should design programs which simultaneously address multiple risk and protective factors, and to be inclusive of adolescents in the implementation of ASRH services.