Pregnancy and sexual health behaviors among youth in the child welfare system

UT Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2010

Monica Faulkner, PhD, LMSW

Suggested Citation
Faulkner, M. (2010). Pregnancy and sexual health behaviors among youth in the child welfare system. Retrieved from UT Electronic Theses and Dissertations (http://hdl.handle.net/2152/ETD-UT-2010-12-2053) 

Abstract
This study examined both sexual activity and pregnancy among maltreated youth referred to child welfare systems using data from the National Survey on Child and Adolescent Well-being, the first nationally representative sample of youth who come into contact with the child welfare system. Results suggest that there are few differences between maltreated youth who enter foster care and those who do not enter foster care. Additionally, foster care does not appear to impact rates of sexual activity or pregnancy for maltreated youth. Rather, problems in the family of origin and maltreatment the child had experienced appear to influence both sexual activity and pregnancy.