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‘BY THE TIME I WAS 13, I WAS OLD‘: EARLY CHILDBEARING NATIVE AMERICAN WOMEN SHARE CHILDHOOD STORIES
Author(s) -
Palacios Janelle
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of midwifery and women's health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.543
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1542-2011
pISSN - 1526-9523
DOI - 10.1016/j.jmwh.2009.06.011
Subject(s) - psychology , history , political science
Purpose : This qualitative interpretive phenomenological study aimed to understand the lived experience of early childbearing (ECB), or teen pregnancy, among reservation‐based Native American women. Specifically, the context for becoming an ECB woman was examined. Background : ECB is common among Native American women. Despite ECB rates dropping for this population from 1993–2003, they are still higher (54.7 per 1,000 live births) than white (26.6 per 1,000 live births) and the total US average (41.9 per 1,000 live births). Little data have demonstrated what situates their lives that they become pregnant. Methods : This collaborative study with a rural Native American Tribe investigated the childhood context of 30 adult self‐identified ECB Native American women. Up to three, semi‐structured, digitally voice‐recorded interviews were conducted. Interview questions eliciting both reflective and narrative responses were used to uncover experiences. Interviews were transcribed. Transcriptions and field notes from participant observations were analyzed by uncovering paradigm cases, thematic analysis, and exemplars. Results : Two prevalent themes surfaced. Chaotic childhoods were marked by traumatic experiences such as death, parental divorce, neglect, and substance use and abuse, while diminished childhoods were characterized by a sense of maturing early through activities and responsibilities. Conclusion : Knowledge gained from these women's experiences demonstrates the need for clinicians to modify their interview to include further assessment questions.