Substance Use and Delinquency

Abstract

Although there has been a decline in teen pregnancy in recent decades, reports have provided evidence that the decline is reversing. Adolescents involved in the child welfare system (CWS) are vulnerable to engage in high-risk behaviors including sexual behaviors, substance use, and delinquency. The literature on sexual risk behaviors in adolescents in the CWS has emphasized that such behaviors are associated with unplanned pregnancies; however, few studies have explored the co-occurrence of other risk behaviors and sexual behaviors. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which substance use and delinquent acts predict teen pregnancy of youths involved with the CWS. The sample consisted of 291 female adolescents in the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being study. Results indicated females who engage in substance use or delinquency at baseline were more likely to have been pregnant 36 months later than those who did not engage in such behaviors.