This report is organized into four sections. Section 1 provides a broad overview of the literature for readers who may have limited familiarity with the teen pregnancy literature. Although this review does not provide a systematic synthesis of the adolescent and early childbearing research base, it is intended to provide a basic context for understanding the research that follows. In our review we cover epidemiological trends; antecedent risk factors; birth and child
outcomes; and the relationship between abuse, neglect, and adolescent
pregnancy.
In Section 2, we present a fairly nontechnical description of the record linkages that were completed for this project. This project resulted in the linkage of roughly 1.5 million California birth records to 1 million CPS records. During a second phase of record linkage focused on children born to CPS-involved adolescent
mothers, birth records were additionally linked to nearly 200,000 CPS records. After linkages were finalized, we developed unique datasets specific to particular analyses. For example, to examine the cumulative percentage of adolescents in foster care who gave birth before age 20, we identified the full population of 17-
year-old girls who were in foster care between 2003 and 2007 (Brief Vol.1-2). To estimate rates of intergenerational maltreatment, we focused on children born to adolescent mothers in 2006 and 2007 so that we had adequate historical and prospective maltreatment information for both mothers and children (Brief Vol.1-3). The details of each analytic dataset are reported in the corresponding research brief.
Section 3 incorporates the analytic research briefs that have been prepared from the linked data. In recognition of the fact that topics may be of interest to different audiences, each brief was written to be read as a standalone product. Four of the five briefs were prepared based on data specific to Los Angeles County; Brief Vol.1-5 reports aggregated statewide findings given that small cell sizes precluded a county-specific analysis. We have, however, also produced statewide reports and tables for Briefs Vol.1-1 through 1-4. These state data tables appear in Appendix A; corresponding state-level reports are available upon request from the authors.
Finally, we conclude this report with a few comments on additional questions that might be addressed using these linked data. We intentionally avoid outlining specific policy or practice recommendations, recognizing that although we were in the position to contribute new knowledge and previously unavailable data to
inform discussions, other stakeholders are better equipped to thoughtfully translate these empirical findings.
We look forward to engaging with others in that next phase.