The Social Effects on Pregnant Teenagers in Na Mom District, Songkhla Province

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate social effects of teenage pregnancy on adolescents in Na Mom district, Songkhla Province.  The data of this qualitative study were collected through in-depth interviews from 15 pregnant teenagers under 20 years old in Na Mom district who were not ready to be pregnant and were still in school but chose to proceed their pregnancy to the delivery, and 3 mothers of those pregnant teenagers. A descriptive analysis was carried out.

The results of the study revealed that most of the pregnant teenagers were not married and their parents of the dyad teenagers did not accept the pregnancy at the beginning even though they accepted it after some time passed.  Parents unusually solved the problem by arranging marriages for the dyad teenagers to maintain reputation of their families.  As a result the teen couples had to drop out of school and made a living to earn income for family expenses which eventually led to their stress, conflict and divorces finally.