Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

School

Public Health

Advisor

Dr. Joseph F. Robare

Abstract

Adolescent pregnancy is a phenomenon that affects the entire world. The effect can be apparent at the individual, family, and societal levels. In 2013, the rate of adolescent pregnancy in Nigeria was 149 per 1,000 aged 10 to 19 years. In this cross-sectional quantitative study, the association between adolescent pregnancies, type of place of residence, household head age, and household head gender was examined for Nigerian adolescent girls aged 15 to 19 years who participated in the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey. The framework for this study was the Socioecological Model (SEM). Three research questions were analyzed using univariate, bivariate, and binary logistic regression. A logistic regression model was used to test for associations. The results indicated that type of place of residence and household head age predicted adolescent pregnancy, although household head gender did not (OR 1.032; 95% CI [0.997, 1.069]). Living in a rural community is associated with an increase in the odds (1.174) of getting pregnant as an adolescent, 95% CI [1.140, 1.209], in Nigeria. Household head age reliably predicted adolescent pregnancy in Nigeria, OR (0.90) with 95% CI [0.890, 0.910], p < 0.05 (0.001). The covariates controlled for this research were ethnicity, income, religion, and educational level. Findings from this study should promote positive social change by helping policy makers to better understand why adolescent pregnancy persists in Nigeria and thereby create laws that help public health practitioners design SEM-based sex education for primary and secondary school girls in Nigeria.

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