Society: Divorce link to teenage pregnancies

Women whose parents have separated are almost twice as likely to become teenage mothers than those whose parents stay together, according to a new survey. Research supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation showed that men from divorced backgrounds are also more likely to have fathered a child by the age of 22 than those from stable marriages. The study also found however that family hardships before divorce plays an important part in explaining why children whose parents separate are more likely to face difficulties as adults. It found that circumstances before parents divorce made a substantial contribution to the increased risk of unemployment.

Compared to children whose parents separated, those who grew up with both parents were on average better qualified and found better jobs. But this difference was largely due to their parents being socially advantaged to begin with - and not necessarily because their parents stayed together.