Discusses the problem of adolescent pregnancy and focuses on improving contraception as a practical solution. Describes the advantages and disadvantages of existing methods (the condom, the pill, and the contraceptive sponge). Predicts that the development of a fundamentally new contraceptive, such as a monthly menses-inducer pill, will not occur…

Final part of two-part paper. Discusses ethical and social questions raised by eugenic and medical discoveries in an overpopulated world. (AL)

Examined anxiety surrounding sterilization decision making, using data from 338 couples with completed childbearing, almost evenly divided between those who were sterilized and those who were not. Separate factor analyses for husbands and wives revealed 3 distinct dimensions of anxiety. Anxiety factors were highly predictive of sterilization…

Study of 125 young adult women revealed that combination of alcohol use with intercourse was frequent occurrence, that women who had 2 to 3 years of sexual experience combined 2 behaviors most often, and that those who combined 2 behaviors at their first intercourse were likely to have done so more frequently in the past month than others.…

The grand narrative of modernism is a dominating story with profound sociopolitical implications in the lives of people with the label of intellectual disabilities. In this article, we throw light on the life stories and interpretive theories of self-advocates, which usually remain hidden between the story-lines of life. Professionals in the field…

This article examines how academic knowledge and power have shaped the discourse on human classification and how political authorities use academic knowledge producers to legitimize public policy. Specifically, the article draws on the role of John M. MacEachran, a former academic at the University of Alberta, in the implementation of the Alberta…

Although unwanted pregnancies can cause social and economic problems for Sub-Saharan African youth, the consequences of "intended" adolescent pregnancies have gone unnoticed. Rarely do studies recognize that youth who desire a pregnancy are less likely to practice safe sex and, therefore, are at greater risk of contracting sexually…

This report addresses the problem of sexually active teenagers who either do not use contraception or use it inconsistently. Psychological and cognitive barriers to contraception use are briefly reviewed and the development of a cognitively oriented intervention designed to modify beliefs inimical to contraceptive use is discussed. The selection…

Although the birth rate among every maternal age group in the United States is declining, among teenagers the decline is evident only for older adolescents, regardless of marital status. Younger adolescents are delivering more, not fewer, babies. This article reviews studies relating to this phenomenon. (Author)

A review of the International Olympic Committee's ban and subsequent reinstatement of a certain drug found in birth-control pills points out the need for careful analysis of drugs and their effects before they are banned. (CB)

This study was formulated to examine the contraceptive behavior of college women and to elucidate distinctions between contraceptive users and nonusers. A survey instrument, conceptually and theoretically based in the Health Belief Model, was designed to elicit self-reports of contraceptive behavior. Findings and implications for health education…

The mother of a Down Syndrome young adult describes factors involved in deciding to have her daughter sterilized. (CL)

Studied fertility control among Puerto Rican women in Hartford, Connecticut, utilizing data gathered from structured interviews. Found that sterilization is the overwhelming preference in this community and that number of children--rather than age or availability of accurate information--is usually the factor that precipitates the decision to…

This study indicates that a great majority of undergraduate college students are aware of the population crisis confronting them and are prepared to deal with it by limiting their families by using contraceptive techniques. (Author)

Questions the common assumption that premarital pregnancy is specially motivated. Contends that it is usually the unanticipated outcome of sexual activity. Results of research on sample of 337 unmarried black teenagers indicates that experience with birth control was strongly related to the way sex was viewed by their mothers. (RJ)