title: Childhood predictors of becoming a teenage mother among Finnish girls.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study predictive associations between psychosocial factors at age 8 and becoming a mother under the age of 20.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective follow-up study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Finland.
  
  
  METHODS
  2867 girls born in 1981.
  
  
  METHODS
  Information on family background and psychiatric symptoms was collected at age 8. The associations between these factors and becoming a teenage mother were analyzed using logistic regression analysis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on births by the age of 20 collected from the hospital discharge register.
  
  
  RESULTS
  128 girls (4.8%) had given birth at the age of 15-19 years. Childhood conduct problems and hyperactive problems, having young mother and family structure other than two biological parents had an independent association with becoming a teenage mother.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Girls with externalizing type of problems in childhood have an increased risk of becoming teenage mothers. These problems may also complicate their motherhood.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland. venla.lehti@utu.fi
authors.forename: Venla
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lehti
authors.forename: Solja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Niemelä
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heinze
authors.forename: Lauri
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sillanmäki
authors.forename: Hans
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Helenius
authors.forename: Jorma
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Piha
authors.forename: Kirsti
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kumpulainen
authors.forename: Tuula
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tamminen
authors.forename: Fredrik
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Almqvist
authors.forename: Andre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sourander
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D019955:Conduct Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D009035:Mothers; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult