Parenting Has No Age Requirement - 1751 Words

Parenting has no age requirement or instructions on how to be a parent, but some mothers naturally adapt to motherhood regardless of their age. According to Piaget’s theory of cognitive development each person’s cognitive abilities are organized into one coherent mental structure. Hence, each teen mother will develop at their own rate and the ability for a person to mentally develop is due to their mental state. Research has proven that parenting stress among adolescent and young mothers contributes less optimal developmental outcomes infancy and early childhood (Lehr, Wecksell, Beth, Lindsay, Devorah, Shoum, 2016). Being a parent is defiantly a life changing event as an adult and may result in hardship for teens that aren’t ready for the†¦show more content†¦Parenting at any age can be challenging, but it can be particularly difficult for adolescent parents. In 2014, just over 249,000 babies were born to teen girls between the ages of 15 and 19 (Scott, 2016). I find it difficult at times to be a mother of two small babies as an adult so I can’t imagine being a teen with a baby. I was raised by a single mother who was a teen mother at the age of 17. My mom would tell stories of how she had to miss school because there was no babysitter to watch my brother so she eventually had to drop out of school due to poor attendance. Society has the ability to help prevent teen parenting by educated the younger generation. Recent studies have explored strategies to reduce teen childbearing and its associated negative outcomes for parents, children, and society. For example, results from economic analyses suggest that implementing evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs, expanding access to Medicaid family planning services, and utilizing mass media campaigns to promote safe sex may reduce teen pregnancy and save taxpayer dollars (Yohalem Feber 2010). My grandmother was an advocate of teen not having so her outlook was if ch ildren practiced adult activities such as having sex then they should be adult enough to take care of their children by themselves. The only certain way to avoid unwanted pregnancies is to abstain from sexual