2007 Volume 21 Issue 1 Pages 1_17-1_29
Purpose
We described the experience of pregnant teenagers who decided to continue pregnancies and classified their decision making factors.
Subjects and Method
We conducted 3 to 4 semi-structured interviews (30 weeks after pregnancy, during admission, 1 month after deliver) to 8 pregnant teenagers who gave their informed consents. By using phenomenological research method, we analyzed verbally obtained data in a qualitative manner.
Result
The experiences of continued pregnancy among the teenagers are summarized as follows: {Case A} "Even though I cannot get married, I wish to end the agony in life by becoming a mother." {Case B} "I regret my last abortion and with this pregnancy I am able to receive approval from my parents." {Case C} "The unexpected pregnancy with my counterpart brought great agony but with his permission to continue pregnancy, I am able to positively tackle my studies." {Case D} "From my past bitter experience of abortion, I decided to continue this pregnancy even under the extreme opposition of his mother and my financial difficulties." {Case E} "I decided to continue the pregnancy because of the joy I can anticipate with a new family and because of my opposition towards the idea of abortion within healthcare." {Case F} "I intend to cope with this unexpected pregnancy along with my university studies and my psychological troubles." {Case G} "I could get enough support and hope for a new future family even though I am isolated by friends." {Case H} "I could find my own values and prepare myself to become a new parent after defending myself against the severe oppositions from both sides of the parents."
The above comments characterized the teenagers' experiences into "regret from previous abortion," "anxious to build a new family," "acceptance from others," "demonstration of own strong will," and "opposition towards the denial by healthcare givers."
Conclusion
Most of the teenage pregnancies are unexpected. The teenagers experienced problems such as attempting a balance between studies and pregnancies or juggling for family adjustments. Each case described presented individual meaning and we derived 5 factors that influenced the decision making of continued pregnancies among teenagers.
