February 2014Vol. 15, No. 2Birth Rates Among CPS-Involved Youth
Research has shown that youth who have involvement with child protective services (CPS) are at risk for negative outcomes across many domains, including teen birth rates. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation recently released a report, California's Most Vulnerable Parents: When Maltreated Children Have Children, that uses linkages between CPS and birth records to provide additional analysis and understanding of teen birth rates among youth currently or formerly involved with CPS in Los Angeles County. The study was conducted by the University of Southern California in collaboration with the California Child Welfare Indicators Project at the University of California at Berkeley and the California Department of Social Services.
The following are some of the key findings from the study:
- Teen girls in foster care have a significantly higher rate of teen childbearing than girls in the general population of Los Angeles County.
- Among teen girls who gave birth, more than 40 percent had been reported as maltreatment victims prior to conception, and 20 percent had confirmed or substantiated allegations.
- Among girls who had been in foster care at age 17, more than 25 percent had given birth at least once before age 20.
- By age 5, children who were born to teen mothers who had been maltreated were more than twice as likely to be victims as other children.
To view the full report, visit:
