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Do sisters influence teenage pregnancy?
A study of more than 42,000 Norwegian teenage girls suggested they were more likely to become pregnant if their older sister had a baby as a teenager.
The effect was greatest when the sisters were of a similar age or from a poorer background.
The Family Planning Association said the results may not necessarily apply to the UK but were still interesting.
Factors such as family background and level of education are
already known to influence teenage pregnancy. This new research, carried
out in conjunction with the University of Bristol, looked at the
specific effect sisters have on each other.
"Sisters generally spend more time together than schoolmates
or friends and so sisters are likely to be influenced by the behaviour
of their siblings," the report said.
They looked at data from children born between 1947 and 1958
to compare families from a similar background from different regions of
Norway.
The researchers said the probability of
the younger sister having a teenage pregnancy went from one in five to
two in five if the elder sister had a baby as a teenager.
Spending more time in school did reduce the probability of a
teenage pregnancy, but on a much smaller scale than the effect of a
pregnant sister.
One of the researchers, Professor Carol Propper, described
this as "the contagious effect of teen motherhood". She said, "Two
groups were particularly vulnerable - those in low income households and
sisters close in age."
She argued that any "sister effect" would wear off as the age
gap increased because the siblings would be on "different life
trajectories", whereas those of similar ages would have similar social
circles.
The study looked at births rather than conceptions. Professor
Propper said an elder sister with a baby could also influence the
decision to keep a baby.
"The research says how important family is compared to
institutions or mandating children to stay at school for an extra couple
of years," she said.
"It is important when thinking about campaigns to affect teen
pregnancy. More policies aimed directly at decreasing teenage pregnancy
may be needed in order to reduce teen births."
Rebecca Findlay, from the Family Planning Association, said: "Teenage pregnancy is complicated.
"Social and economic deprivation and poor education all
impact hugely onto it and we already know that being the daughter of a
teenage mother is one of the contributing risk factors towards teenage
pregnancy.
"Although it's difficult to draw direct comparisons to this country just yet, this research is of interest."
Jules Hillier, the deputy chief executive of the charity
Brook, said: "There are links between low aspirations, deprivation and
teenage pregnancy, but there are also a whole range of measures that
need to be in place to reduce teenage pregnancy rates such as
comprehensive sex and relationships education and easy access to sexual
health services."
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