wed-lock births and continuation of the intergenerational cycle from mother to daughter and back again • Irresponsible fatherhood • Lack of preparation for work. It is the perception of the researcher that in preventing teen pregnancy, the emphasis should not only be on reproductive health issues, but also one that would take into consideration the other critical issues listed above. In addition, some of the most accepted previous circumstances associated with the phenomenon of teenage sexuality and adolescent pregnancy include issues with poverty and welfare dependence; environment, cultural and social factors; school problems and peer pressure; influence of parents and poor sex education; age at which sex is initiated; the influence of technology; and desire to be rebellious. The above list identifies the more important negative outcomes associated with early childbearing (e.g., poverty, possible lower educational attainment, and emotional anxiety). In addition, among teenagers, 85% of pregnancies are unintended (D'Angelo et al., 2004). Because there is much literature on each of the negative outcomes listed above, each have been grouped and discussed in individual subsections below. Poverty and welfare dependence. A key element in the increasing occurrence of teen pregnancy is poverty (Santelli et al., 2009). Poverty affects the community in ways that often cause a ripple effect in terms of social consequences. In many cases, these consequences include lower educational attainment and high school dropout. Teenagers (ages 13 to 19 years) in the United States are engaging in sexual activity at 25 somewhat high rates. Some children, even younger than 13 years of age, are having premarital relations (Price & Hyde, 2009). The high rate of increase in adolescent pregnancy has become a national concern. In particular, the African American community has been and continues to be affected by the consequences of high rates of teen sexual activity and pregnancy. This problem is particularly devastating because of the many environmental consequences experienced by this population. Many teenage mothers rely on welfare to help them support and raise their children because they find it difficult to work and take care of their child at the same time (Meade et al., 2008). Teen mothers are less likely to graduate from high school and are more likely to live in poverty and rely on welfare than their peers who delay having children (Mangino, 2008). The children of teenage mothers are often born with a low birth weight, experience health and developmental problems, and frequently are abused or neglected. Teenagers’ yearly income averages 40% less than that of adults. It is not surprising therefore that the majority of young mothers end up living in poverty and on welfare (Meade, 2008). Most teenagers are poor before they have children and very few teenage mothers marry their partners. This results in a large number of single-parent homes. These children, in turn, model the behavior of their mother as they become teenagers and thus the intergenerational cycle continues (Meade, 2008). Since the early 1970s, child poverty has risen five times higher in single-parent than in two-parent families and in fatherless families. It is almost certain that if a poor teenage girl becomes pregnant, she will remain poor and will end up raising her child on welfare. Although help in the form of food stamps, housing, and other subsidies are available for pregnant adolescents, eligibility requirements make it difficult to apply for, 26 and obtain, government-related assistance. Such requirements vary, but the major national welfare requirements are in The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. According to this act, in order for pregnant or parenting teens to obtain assistance, they are “required to live with a responsible adult or in an adult-supervised setting and participate in educational and training activities” (The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996, p.4). Living at home becomes increasingly difficult if support does not exist at home or if an adult-supervised setting is not available. This can mean that single pregnant or parenting teenage girls will only be eligible to receive welfare for two years. After the two-year time limit, they are required to work at least 24 hours per week during the third year of assistance, and 30 hours per week during the next two years. After five consecutive years of assistance, they will no longer be eligible for cash aid, according to the Reconciliation Act of 1996. Therefore, teenage girls who do not have family support or a good-paying job have financial difficulty when raising a child. Although teen parents now make up only about five percent of welfare recipients, females who begin parenting while in their teens account for 40-50% of welfare caseloads (Bridgeland, Dilulio, & Morison, 2006). To varying degrees, states have used the same Temporary Aid to the Needy (TANF) funds to support efforts to prevent teen pregnancy. By law, individual state plans are expected to give special emphasis to teen pregnancy prevention by initiating prevention programs, offering assisted help, and other activities of a similar nature. In fact, welfare legislation also requires the federal government to ensure that at least one-fourth of the nation’s communities have teen pregnancy prevention