Furthermore, abstinence-only programs have not been shown to have an appreciable impact on teen pregnancy rates (Hunt). In fact, more and earlier safe-sex education appears to help reduce the number of teen pregnancies (Hunt). However, the most effective existing approaches to preventing or reducing teen pregnancy seem to combine both abstinence and contraceptive usage. One thing is clear: contraceptive use alone will not be enough to prevent teen pregnancy. While contraceptives are very successful in preventing pregnancy if used properly, they are also subject to a wide variety of user error. Furthermore, some researchers suggests that the recent decreases in teen pregnancy rates are not due to increased use of contraceptives alone, but also to an increased abstinence rate among teens (Mohn). While encouraging teenage boys to engage in couple-like behaviors increases the likelihood that they will discuss contraception with their partners before engaging in sex for the first time, those discussions will not necessarily always lead to sexual intercourse. One of the unspoken positives is that, by discussing contraception, teenagers are discussing the possibility that a pregnancy could result from a sexual relationship. Hopefully, a side effect of those contraceptive discussions will be an increase in the likelihood that teenage couples will delay their first sexual experiences.

Traditionally, teen-pregnancy prevention efforts have focused on teenage girls. However, that approach is failing: one in three girls in America will become pregnant as a teenager (Hunt). The reality is that teen pregnancy rate will dramatically decline if teen boys are encouraged to take a more active role in their romantic relationships. Increasing boys' interest in the romantic relationships will encourage the boys to view the girls as something greater than sexual objects and reduce the amount of pressure that they might otherwise place...

If an increase in couple-like behaviors does not delay or prevent intercourse, it still increases the likelihood that the boy will discuss contraceptives with his potential partner prior to engaging in sexual activity. Finally, because girls are much more likely to bring up contraceptives and insist on their use with boys that they consider their romantic partner, even if the efforts to encourage and support boys when they engage in couple-like behaviors do not alter male behavior patterns, there should still be a reduction in resultant teen-pregnancy rates.
Bibliography

Hunt, Albert R. "Beware the Moral Cops." The Wall Street Journal. 2 Dec. 2004. The National

Center to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. 6 Dec. 2004 http://www.teenpregnancy.org/about/announcements/news/pdf/WSJ12-2-04.pdf.

Mohn, J.K., Tingle L.R. And Finger, R. "An Analysis of the Causes of the Decline in Non-marital

Birth and Pregnancy Rates for Teens from 1991 to 1995. Adolescent and Family Health, 3(1) (2002): 39-47.

Ryan, Suzanne, Kerry Franzetta, and Jennifer Manlove. "Science Says: Characteristics of Teens' First Sexual Partners." Putting What Works to Work. Sept. 2003. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. 5 Dec. 2004 http://www.teenpregnancy.org/works/pdf/sciencesaysFirstPartner.pdf.

Teen Sex and Pregnancy." Facts in Brief. Sept. 1999. The Alan Guttmacher Institute. 6 Dec. 2004 http://www.agi-usa.org/pubs/fb_teen_sex.html

U.S. Pregnancy Rate Down from Peak; Births and Abortions on the Decline." National Center for Health Statistics. 4 May 2004. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 5 Dec. 2004