The self-concept of pregnant and nonpregnant adolescents and changes that occur between trimesters

Twenty-two nonpregnant adolescents and 14 pregnant adolescents selected from Chesterfield Health Department\u27s clinic population participated in a study to determine if the self-concept of a nonpregnant adolescent is higher than that of a pregnant adolescent. Each group was further subdivided into a middle adolescent and a late adolescent category to determine if there is any difference in the self-concept of a pregnant adolescent in the middle adolescent stage versus that of a pregnant adolescent in the late adolescent stage. Coopersmith\u27s Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI), School Form, was administered to test the subject\u27s perception of herself and to measure evaluative attitudes toward the self in social, academic, family, and personal areas of experience. The SEI was administered to each pregnant adolescent prior to the end of her second trimester and again during her third trimester and once to each nonpregnant adolescent. The first analysis employed a MANOVA based on a 2 (pregnant versus nonpregnant) x 2 (middle adolescent stage versus late adolescent stage) design with five dependent variables: total self score, general self score, social self-peer score, home-parents score and school-academic score. Data from the pregnant group was subjected to a repeated measures MANOVA to determine if there was any difference in a pregnant adolescent\u27s self-concept in her second trimester versus her third trimester of pregnancy. The analysis of data revealed no significant difference between the self-concept of a non pregnant adolescent and a pregnant adolescent. Further, there was no significant difference found in the self-concept of a pregnant adolescent in the middle versus the late adolescent stage. There was also no significant difference in the self-concept of a pregnant adolescent throughout the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. While empirical research done to date has pointed toward the probable existence of a low self-concept on the part of pregnant adolescent girls, the present research does not support the previous findings