Why are children born to teen mothers at risk for adverse outcomes in young adulthood? Results from a 20-year longitudinal study

This 20-year longitudinal study showed that the young adult offspring of te en mothers are at risk for a range of adverse outcomes including early scho ol leaving, unemployment, early parenthood, and violent offending. We teste d how much the effect of teen childbearing on offspring outcomes could be a ccounted for by social selection tin which a woman's characteristics that m ake her an inadequate parent also make her likely to bear children in her t eens) versus social influence tin which the consequences of becoming a teen mother also bring harm to her children, apart from any characteristics of her own). The results provided support for both mechanisms. Across outcomes , maternal characteristics and family circumstances together accounted for approximately 39% of the effect of teen childbearing on offspring outcomes. Consistent with a social-selection hypothesis, maternal characteristics ac counted for approximately 18% of the effect of teen childbearing on offspri ng outcomes; consistent with a social-influence hypothesis, family circumst ances accounted for 21% of the teen childbearing effect after controlling f or maternal characteristics. These results suggest that public policy initi atives should be targeted not only at delaying childbearing in the populati on but at supporting individual at-risk mothers and their children.