Abstract
This cross-sectional research consisted of a quantitative and a qualitative study. The study
was aimed at determining the factors influencing teenage pregnancy/giving birth. In the quantitative
part, 31 samples, who had given birth in Wangpong Hospital between October 1, 2006 and September 30, 2007, were selected and interviewed by using a questionnaire. In the qualitative part,
the participants were purposively selected and interviewed by using an interview guide until data
saturation had been achieved; there were eight subjects in this study. Quantitative data were
analyzed by using descriptive statistics, namely percentage, mean and standard deviation, and
qualitative data were analyzed by the process of summative analysis.
The study results showed that the majority of pregnancies were females 18 years old,
whose husbands were 22 years old. Most of them studied to the junior high school level. They were
farmers with low income. The age of first pregnancy was between 12 and 17 years and included
both wanted and unwanted pregnancies. The complications of pregnancy included preterm labor,
eclampsia, low birth weight and dystocia. The causes of the child being unwanted by the parents
were lack of knowledge of sexuality, birth control and family planning. The pregnancies that were
wanted reflected different problems, such as economic problems, and those related to family support
and the environment. Suggestions given by the pregnant teenagers were (1) be strong minded and
donût take it easy, (2) obtain a higher education before becoming pregnant, and (3) practice birth
control if one is at risk of pregnancy. These findings suggested that hospital or health services
should be offering antepartum care for pregnant teenagers in order to provide knowledge about
family planning and effective care of a pregnancy. Moreover, hospitals should also coordinate with
high schools in giving classes on sex education and family planning.
