title: Differentiation of girls at risk of early pregnancy from the general population of adolescents.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine two psychological characteristics (locus of control and purpose in life) that have been associated with early pregnancy. The characteristics were examined first in samples drawn from a general population of adolescents and then in samples of ever-pregnant and never-pregnant adolescents. Ever-pregnant girls differed neither from the general population of adolescents nor from the matched sample of never-pregnant girls on the two psychological dimensions. Alternatives for conceptualizing risk are proposed.
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D009042:Motivation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence; D011581:Psychological Tests; D011606:Psychosexual Development; D012306:Risk; D012927:Social Control, Informal; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors