Index of religiosity correlates positively to index of teen births

Researchers from the civilized corners of Pennsylvania (i.e., universities in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh) are reporting that teen birth rates are higher in the very conservatively religious American states than in the more secular or liberally religious states. That is, the higher percentage a state has of people who agree with statements like "There is only one way to interpret the teachings of my religion" or who agree that the bible should be interpreted literally, the higher percentage that same state will have of teen pregnancies.

Mississippi tops both of the lists, i.e., the list of states that are the most conservatively religious, and the list of states with the highest rate of teen births. All but 1 of the other states on both lists are in the South, too. (Utah is, of course, conservatively religious; but it's not in the South.)

The researchers' conclusion: conservative religionists teach against contraception as well as against sex and abortion. Liberal religionists may well still teach against sex and abortion, but they'll also teach contraception. Thus, ifwhen a teen from a conservatively religious household has sex, they're not prepared to avoid pregnancy. But ifwhen a teen from a liberally religious household has sex, they're more likely to be prepared to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.

An abstract of the study is available online now. The full article will be published in an upcoming issue of Reproductive Health, presumably with Bristol Palin (video: start about 4:20) on the cover.