Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

5-1992

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Major

Health Promotion and Health Education

Major Professor

Robert L. Pursley

Committee Members

James Neutens, Bill Wallace, Shanette Harris

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to design and develop an anonymous and confidential microcomputer software program to identify the pregnancy risk factors of female adolescents. The second purpose was to provide baseline data of adolescents attending the Knox County Health Department Family Planning Clinic, and to address whether significant differences exist in the pregnancy risk scores among race and age groups of the adolescents. Initial instrument reliability was established through pilot test and retest. The statistical method used to assess reliability of the final instrument was Spearman Correlation Coefficient. The data were collected using the microcomputer software program entitled: Teenage Risk Appraisal for Pregnancy. version 1.0. The convenience sample consisted of 94 adolescents seeking services at the Knox County Health Department, Family Planing Clinic. Descriptive statistics were used to obtain frequencies and percentages of the sample according to age, risk category, and race. T-test for independent samples, and Chi-square were utilized to determine whether significant differences existed among age categories, race and mean pregnancy risk scores. An index of discrimination was utilized to determine the ability of the items to differentiate those adolescents who scored in the lower one-third of pregnancy risk scores from those who scored in the upper one-third of pregnancy risk scores. The major findings included: (1) The mean pregnancy risk score of the 94 adolescents participating in the research was 52.80; (2) The results of cross-tabulation of race with pregnancy risk score was not significant when Chi-square was applied at the .01 level of significance; (3) The results of cross-tabulation of age categories (12-14, 15-16, and 17-18) with pregnancy risk categories (score 0-50 and 51-92) was not significant when Chi-square was applied at the .01 level of significance; (3) Significant findings were not found when t-tests were applied to compare differences among the mean pregnancy risk scores of adolescents 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 years of age; (4) Significant findings were found when t-tests were applied to compare the mean pregnancy risk scores of adolescents 12 years of age with the mean pregnancy risk score of adolescents 15 and 17 years of age adolescents at the .01 level of significance. The following major conclusions were drawn from the findings of the study: (1) Based upon this research, the Teenage Risk Appraisal for Pregnancy, version 1.0, is a valid and reliable instrument to identify the pregnancy risk factors of adolescent females; (2) For those adolescents 13 through 18 years of age participating in the study, age was not a significant factor in determining the overall pregnancy risk score; (3) For those adolescents participating in the research, race was not a factor in determining the overall pregnancy risk score; (4) For those adolescents 12 years of age when compared to those 15 and 17 years of age, participating in the research, age may be a factor in determining their overall pregnancy risk score. The significance of the study is that it is the first attempt to develop a valid and reliable, anonymous computerized instrument which will identify female adolescents' pregnancy risk factors while providing individualized, confidential, and immediate feedback to the adolescent.

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