Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 16, 1992 TAG: 9203160067
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium
There was a 25 percent drop in abortions by girls aged 17 and younger statewide from 1987 to 1990. The drop in the overall teen-age population was 4 percent.
One factor behind the decrease in the number of abortions is increased social acceptance of unwed mothers, said Sherry Norfleet, education director of Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Virginia.
"Society is simply more accepting of unwed mothers . . . Young girls go to school pregnant and proud of it," Norfleet said. "You have movie stars who are role models who are having babies out of wedlock."
Also, many teens begin considering abortion too late in their pregnancy or simply cannot afford the procedure, she said.
Statewide, the teen pregnancy rate has fluctuated slightly but is essentially unchanged over the period, at about 46 per 1,000 teens, according to the state Center for Health Statistics.
Social services officials caution that the figures should be analyzed in light of the declining number of teen-agers, and also consider other demographic factors such as income and race.
"You really have to control for those before you could make any speculation" as to whether counseling and family-life education classes in schools and churches are working, said Edward Welp, executive director of the Child and Family Service in Portsmouth.
Programs by Welp's agency and others try to prevent teen pregnancy by boosting self-esteem, particularly for those who already have a child.
"We focus a lot on goal-setting, how to get through school and what to do with the rest of their lives," Welp said. "That probably has more influence than all the education on safe sex. If kids have a sense of direction, if they know what they want to do and that having a second child isn't in the plans, then they are less fatalistic."
by CNB