ABSTRACT
Conceiving and giving birth to a baby during the teenage years and outside of a marriage is a life-changing event that for many young women in America sets them on a lifelong path of social and economic disadvantage. This is so because this culture expects every mother-regardless of her physical age, level of maturity, or life experiences-to be responsible for the care and well-being of her child. As her pregnancy progresses and she gives birth, her childhood ends and her community, institutions, and even her family expect her to behave as an adult without regard to her readiness, capacity, or understanding of the demands that will be made of her.
