title: More than playing house: a developmental perspective on the strengths in teenage motherhood.
abstract: Historically, the literature on adolescent pregnancy and motherhood has focused primarily on negative outcome. A review of current research reveals that outcomes for many teenage mothers and their children are not necessarily bleak. Indeed, becoming a parent can stimulate positive change in the adolescent's life. It is suggested that developmental level interacts with psychological, sociocultural, economic, family, and health variables to create a context in which teenage pregnancy can be an inhibitor or an enhancer of maturation.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002657:Child Development; D002668:Child Rearing; D004532:Ego; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009014:Morals; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009769:Object Attachment; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence; D011379:Prognosis; D011606:Psychosexual Development; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012944:Social Support