Why are unplanned pregnancies normally blamed on teens?

Question

I see this a lot on this site and in 'real' life. People like to point the finger at teenagers saying that they were irresponsible and have the majority of unplanned pregnancies---and abortions.

I honestly don't believe that to be the case at all. Of course, teenagers do get pregnant but I can only imagine how many people who are 'adults' are also irresponsible and end up pregnant--in fact I know many but I don't feel there will ever be a percentage because so many adults will not admit it was not planned OR they just get an abortion.

So, why do the majority of unplanned pregnancies get blamed on teenagers? Also, why do people blame the abortion rate on teens when if fact most older women get them?

I am not a teenager by the way but in about five quesitons today I've noticed people blaming abortions and unplanned pregnancies on 'young girls' and 'stupid teenagers.'

Answer 1

I think people know that teens are not to blame for all the unplanned pregnancies and abortions, they are just easier to blame. If you are 25 and have a one night stand and get an abortion it was an honest accident and people forget it ever happened. But if you are 17 and you get pregnant you are a stupid irresponsible kid. It is so ignorant. Also, the majority of adults who get an abortion don't tell many people about it, while underage teens HAVE to tell their parents. It is totally unfair. I think a lot of the teen pregnancies are directly related to the lack of sex education and access to birth control, and who is really to blame for that?

Answer 2

Well the answer is simple, grown older women have the resources to take care of children while teenage girls don't. There will never be much focus on older women's abortions because not only do they have the money to take care of their kids, they have the money to pay for the abortions too where as a young girl would probably have to rely on her parents and others for help so of course this would get more attention then grown ups. Plus I don't know what community you live in but in mine, young girls do have a lot of unplanned pregnancies. Matter of fact, most females I know growing up had ad least one abortion during their teenage years so we can not deny that this is a real problem. This is just my community of course and not all teenagers. Teenage sex is a problem, can't deny that and can't be blamed only on young girls either because it is usually young boys that encourage them to have sex in the first place. I know many 14/15 year old girls that have sex and most of them will say they did it not because they really wanted to but because the boy they liked wanted to do it.

Answer 3

I agree to an extent. I think that teens get "blamed" more for unplanned pregnancies because they tend to be more irresponsible and inexperienced when it comes to sex. Kids are having sex way too young these days! I'm 24 now - when I was a 13/14 yrs old, I never even thought about having sex. Now, there are kids at that age who have had more partners than I've had now! I think when you're a teenager you think you're invincible & don't know how to completely understand the consequences to their actions. I know I am generalizing - I definately don't think this applies to ALL teens...just some (enough for them to be the target of the majority of unplanned pregnancies).
I just wish teens would wait until they're old enough to deal with the consequences of sex. Adults who make poor choices & fail to protect themselves are a bad example to teens. Everyone makes mistakes...just hope they learn from them...that's all that counts.

Answer 4

Even though I'm only 18 years old I agree with this. I decided last minute to not get an abortion and most of the women there were in at least their late 20s. Yet, I was the only one that walked out. I don't think it's fair that because I'm 18 years old and pregnant I'm automatically "irresponsible" when I took my birth control everyday.

Answer 5

I think most people probably are looking at percentages rather than raw numbers. The percentage of teenage pregnancies that are unplanned is extrememly high (I'd GUESS well over 90%) whereas the percentage of adult unplanned pregnancies is much lower (again, guessing from my peer group, I'd say not higher than 50%).

Answer 6

Teenagers don't get blamed for all unplanned pregnancies. Maybe is just seems that way because you are a teen. It is a huge deal when teens get pregnant because they are still in school and probably can't support the baby themselves, while an adult usually can even if the pregnancy was unplanned.

Answer 7

Statistics aren't based on imagination. Adults being irresponsible is one thing since they ARE supposed to know better, but teens are the largest group and don't realize the ramifications of having to mature before they are truly mature enough to handle the stress of parenthood. Hell, even supposedly mature adults are hard-pressed to know what is involved with child-rearing and it's usually a fantasy that makes them think they can be or are good parents. America could learn something from other cultures that say "It takes an entire village to raise a child."

Answer 8

It's a chicken or the egg situation. Women are often judged more harshly for getting pregnant than men are for impregnating a woman. Does this condemnation drive women to be more selective, thus turning them into sexual "gatekeepers"? Or is it just based on their sex drive? Who knows? I don't like pointing fingers or allocating blame, especially through the use of sweeping generalizations. If there is a problem that I could have prevented, I tend to take responsibility for it, regardless of other factors.

Answer 9

A condom costs less than $1. An abortion costs $300 or more.

Anyone using abortion exclusively for birth control is an idiot.

Abortion obviously IS birth control, and has been available for thousands of years. (Ergot tainted bread was one early abortificient--others were known to ancient people, and are mentioned in, for example, the Bible).

I don't know why abortion is considered irresponsible. Unprotected sex is irresponsible, yes, but mistakes happen. Condoms break, slip, and leak. Birth control devices sometimes fail. Often nature's cycles are unreliable. That is one reason Catholics have so many children.

If you cannot care for a child--if you cannot be a good mother, then you shouldn't become one. If you are unwilling to give up smoking, drinking, hot tubbing, and any other activity that could cause harm to your developing fetus--if you are unable to provide good prenatal care--then probably abortion is for you.

What is more immoral, abortion, or giving birth to a crack addicted, congenitally deformed baby?

This is why we are human beings and not sheep. When a sheep gets pregnant, it has no choice. It MUST give birth. Human beings have a choice in the matter. Then again, a sheep may choose not to nurse its lamb. I have seen this happen before--the lamb stars to death if no surrogate is available. This is more common that people think. With human beings--you kill your kid, and I find out about it, chances are very good I'm going to report you. Expect to spend some time in prison.

As for abortion, I see no reason anyone should be punished for failed birth control. Our congress decided that if a woman should find herself pregnant with an anacepahlic fetus (a baby without a brain, or with its brain outside its skull), she should be punished. She cannot obtain a safe and effective abortion, but instead must suffer an expensive and painful c-section abortion. That is US law, passed by a bunch of radical morons who ignornantly fancy themselves to be doctors.

Answer 10

It's probably because when an adult has an unplanned pregnancy, they are more able to take responsibility for their actions. Personally, I have had two unplanned pregnancies. The difference is that I was married and didn't expect my parents, or the taxpayers to take responsibility for my choice to have sex with my husband. Many teenagers go out and have sex without considering the consequences of their actions and then expect everyone else to take care of their problems for them. As fa as abortion goes, there are plenty of older women who get them and also use them as birth control, but they don't go out and advertise that they did it like a teenager would to get sympathy or attention.