Abstract

OLIVEIRA-MONTEIRO, Nancy Ramacciotti de et al. Pregnancy and maternity of adolescents: risk and protector factors. Rev. bras. crescimento desenvolv. hum. [online]. 2011, vol.21, n.2, pp. 198-209. ISSN 0104-1282.

INTRODUCTION: breeding in adolescence is among the concerns related to youth development and health, not necessarily with a negative significance. OBJECTIVE: the present study researched competence data, psychological problems and indicative of risk and protection factors inside a group of pregnant teenagers and teen mothers. METHOD: for that purpose, the Youth Self Report (YSR) and a scale of risk/protection factors during teen maternity (FRIP) were used. We surveyed 46 adolescents between 13 and 18 years, users of health services offered in Santos (SP) region: 27 at first pregnancy and 19 with firstborns under one year of age. RESULTS: the level of competence was lower among poorer adolescents, were they pregnant or mothers. Poverty was not associated with indicators of psychological problems, which were evaluated within a normality range by the YSR. Mothers presented self reference of personal qualities in levels significantly higher than the pregnant girls. Risk / protection factors involving environmental systems were indicated. Claims of hope and dreams about their own lives besides positive contacts with their families and with the fathers of their children were appointed as protection factors, while the proximity of their households to the traffic of drugs was the main risk factor identified. CONCLUSION: p rotection factors derived from the environmental contextures of the adolescents researched might be related to the development of the competence, an important resource regarding the situation of adolescent motherhood.

Keywords : pregnancy in adolescence; risk and protection factors; human development.

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