The Cradle of Knowledge: African Journal of Educational and Social Science Research
Family and School Connectedness and Teenage Pregnancy in Amansie Central District, Ghana
Abstract
The general assumption is that young people require direction and support from the adult world to achieve milestones in life. When family and school are unable to meet these needs, adolescents seek out other means of meeting the needs which are often negative sources. The study that produced this paper was designed to find out if social connectedness in the family, the school and the peer group would be predictive of teen motherhood. The study involved a sample of 513 respondents who were made up of 170 teen mothers and 343 non-mothers. The questionnaire, which also served as an interview guide, was used to gather the data. The result indicated that of all the two forms of social connectedness only family connectedness, could predict early motherhood. That is, school-age teen mothers who were attached to family members tended to be less predisposed to early sex, thereby not becoming pregnant during their teens. It is therefore concluded that the stronger the family connectedness a teenage girl enjoys, the less likely it is that she will engage in early sex and become an early (teen) mother. Therefore, when family connectedness is promoted, teenage pregnancy would be controlled and teenage girls would stay in school. It is recommended to parents to establish close bonds of relationship with their teen girls, and then use that bond to constantly draw the teen’s attention to the negative consequences of early sex.
Key words: Family connectedness; school connectedness; teen-motherhood; teen non-motherhood; attachment
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