This study assessed participant, facilitator, and program-level characteristics associated with intervention dosage among women receiving an evidence-based perinatal depression preventive intervention, Mothers and Babies (MB). We also explored how intervention dosage affected the use and maintenance of core skills taught in the six-session…

Although Ghana's comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) program has been lauded, no study has examined its association with the sexual health outcomes of Ghanaian youth. Using data collected from 2,982 in-school youth (male = 1,820 and female = 1,162) aged 15 to 17 years in three administrative regions of the country, we applied discrete-time…

Background: School-based pregnancy prevention programs should optimally be offered while students are still engaged in school since early disengagement is strongly associated with risk of a teen birth. Methods: We used linked New York City birth and enrollment data (2005-2013), a sample of 6,809 teen mothers (mean age conception = 16.2 years). We…

School-based health clinics (SBHCs) offer convenient, free, and much-needed health services to adolescents who have been shown to lack access to preventative care and treatment. With high rates of risky sexual behavior and associated negative health outcomes, SBHCs are particularly effective in providing sexual health services. This article…

Background: The purpose of this study was to assess the protective influence of individual, family, and community assets from the initiation of sexual intercourse (ISI) for adolescents living in one-parent households compared with adolescents living in two-parent households. Methods: Five waves of data were collected annually over a 4-year period…

Could we combat poverty by reducing the number of unintended and nonmarital births? This article proposes a federal policy that would provide all women with information about, and free access to, a range of contraceptive services, including long-acting reversible contraceptives; reviews what it is that we do and do not know; discusses several…

Support for sex education in middle and high school and for the inclusion of a variety of topics in sex education programmes is strong among likely voters in the USA. This survey was conducted with a diverse sample of 965 adults who were invited from the largest probability-based panel in the USA. In addition to supporting sex education in…

Expanding condom-related knowledge and skills and reducing barriers to condom use have the potential to help reduce pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections among youth. These goals are sometimes addressed through condom education and availability (CEA) programs as part of sexuality education in school. Parents are a key constituency in…

Teenage mothers are more likely to use drugs, and their children are more likely to use substances and become pregnant during adolescence. Teenage mothers' substance use may play a role in the intergenerational risk for adolescent pregnancy. Pregnant adolescents (12-18 years) were seen during pregnancy and postnatal years 6, 10, 14, and 16 (n =…

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy published free online lessons that help students take action to prevent unplanned pregnancy and complete their education. From the fall of 2012 to the spring of 2014, approximately 2,800 students took the online lessons and participated in pre- and post-lesson evaluation surveys at four…

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. Population-based data on these behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth nationwide. Reporting…

Despite recent declines, Latinas bear a disproportionate burden of teen births. Understanding social, cultural, and demographic factors underlying pregnancy desire among Latino adolescents is needed to design effective teen pregnancy prevention interventions. A questionnaire was completed by 794 Latino youth including a "pregnancy wantedness…

The purpose of this study was to assess community attitudes toward school-based abstinence-plus sexuality education. A dual sampling approach of landlines and cell phones resulted in 988 adults from two counties completing "The South Carolina Survey of Public Opinion on Pregnancy Prevention." Among respondents, 87.1% supported…

Mothers play an important role in promoting the sexual health of their adolescent children. Fifty-seven HIV-positive mothers with adolescent children participated in an in-depth, qualitative interview regarding whether they have talked to their children about safer sex and sexually transmitted disease (STD) prevention, including at what age they…

This study explored the relationships among personal factors, family structure and family function, adolescents’ self-efficacy for safe sex, and sexual behaviors among sexually active adolescents. A subset sample from the first three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) was selected for this exploratory…