Table 1.

Main determinants of unintended pregnancy amongst adolescents

Title	Year/country	Study type	Determinants of adolescent pregnancy
Understanding sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescents: evidence from a formative evaluation in Wakiso district, Uganda	2015 Uganda	Qualitative study	Sexual advances from adult males, rape, defilement, alcohol, marijuana, lack of youth counsellors, lack of sex education, inadequate education on family planning, cost of contraceptives, inadequate health workers and fear of stigma in seeking help form health workers.
Barriers to access reproductive healthcare for pregnant adolescent girls: a qualitative study in Tanzania	2015 Tanzania	Qualitative study	They viewed condoms as ineffective for preventing STIs and pregnancies and unnecessary for those in committed relationships. Stigma and long waiting times. Lack of privacy in the clinics discouraged young females from seeking reproductive healthcare, lack of privacy, unkind health care workers
Relationship dynamics and teenage pregnancy in South Africa	2001 south Africa	Exploratory study	Forced sexual initiation, unwillingness to confront unfaithful partner, partners of adolescents were older, unequal power relations, living in extended family, non-use of contraceptives, peer influence, and curiosity.
Who’s that girl? A qualitative analysis of adolescent girls’ views on factors associated with teenage pregnancies in Bolgatanga, Ghana	2016 Ghana.	Qualitative study	Material gain, positive attitude towards relationship, early sexual debut, peer influence, most parents don’t talk about safe sex with their children, male should be responsible to buy condoms, fear of ridicule, misconceptions about family planning, inability to resist temptation,
Gendered norms, sexual exploitation and adolescent pregnancy in rural Tanzania	2013, Tanzania	Qualitative study	Poverty, inability to exercise control over sexual decisions, adolescents sexual relationship with older men, early marriage, sexual expectations from men, rape, coerced sex
Adolescent pregnancy and associated factors in South African youth	2012 south Africa	Cross sectional study	Unemployment, poverty, high sexual permissive attitude, contraceptive use, didn’t understand the risk of pregnancy, to prove their maturity, unequal power in relationship
Family and community support to adolescent mothers in Swaziland	2003 Swaziland	Mixed method	Peer influence, lack of sexual and reproductive information from families and communities
Factors influencing the adolescent pregnancy rate in the Greater Giyani Municipality, Limpopo Province – South Africa	2015 south Africa	Descriptive and explorative survey	Inconvenient health services, poor relationship with health workers, peer pressure, inadequate sexual knowledge, changing attitude toward sex.
Determinants of Sexual Activity and Pregnancy among Unmarried Young Women in Urban Kenya: A Cross-Sectional Study	2015 Kenya	Cross-Sectional Study	Education level, religion, employment status, household size, family planning knowledge, misconceptions, and early sexual debut.
Unmet social needs and teenage pregnancy in Ogbomosho, South-western Nigeria	2014 Nigeria	Cross-Sectional Study	The unmet material and financial supports expected from parents, the lack of free education from government up until secondary school level, the lack of sex education and knowledge needs for signs of maturity, and discouragement from friends not to have boyfriend.
Adolescent girls, illegal abortions and “sugar-daddies” in Dar es Salaam: vulnerable victims and active social agents	2001 Tanzania	Qualitative study	Material benefits from men, high-risk sexual activity, lack of family planning information, sex education and poor health services.
Teenage pregnancy experiences in rural Kenya	2003 Kenya	Community based survey	Sexual active adolescents, unmet reproductive health needs, education level of adolescents
Health workers’ attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health services for unmarried adolescents in Ethiopia	2012 Ethiopia	descriptive cross-sectional survey	Negative attitude of health workers towards providing RH services to unmarried adolescents, low education of health workers, and lack of training on RH services.
Nurse-Midwives’ Attitudes towards Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Needs in Kenya and Zambia	2006 Kenyan and Zambia	cross-sectional survey	Negative attitudes of health workers towards adolescent sexual activity, contraceptive use and seeking reproductive health services.
Determinants of teenage pregnancies: The case of Busia District in Kenya	2007 Kenya	Cross sectional survey	Level of education, sex education, peer pressure, inappropriate form of recreation, lack of parental guidance and counselling, poverty, knowledge of contraception.
Blood Blockages and Scolding Nurses: Barriers to Adolescent Contraceptive Use in South Africa	2006 south Africa	Qualitative study	Pressure from male partners, fears about the effects of contraception, health workers attempt to stigmatize teenage sexuality, scolding and hash treatment of adolescents, unwillingness to acknowledge adolescent experience as contraceptive users.
A participatory action research approach to developing youth-friendly strategies for the prevention of teenage pregnancy	2016 South Africa	participatory action research approach	Sexual curiosity, alcohol consumption, unprotected sex, peer influence, lack of family support, parental absence, low family socioeconomic status, gender power inequality, relationship with elder men, lack of youth-friendly clinics
Socio-Cultural Determinants of Contraceptives Use Among Adolescents in Northern Ghana	2015 Ghana	Descriptive cross-sectional study	Early sexual debut, educational level, parental neglect, money, curiosity, peer pressure
Predictors of Sexual Debut Among Young Adolescents in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements	2014 kenya	Descriptive cross-sectional study	School dropout, education, severe family dysfunction, lack of parental control.
Early Pregnancy of Junior High School Girls: Causes and Implications on Academic Progression in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region Of Ghana	2015 Ghana	Cross-sectional study	Cell phone usage by teenagers, inadequate contraceptives, peer group influence, family neglect and poverty, peer group influence, lack of sex education.
Teenage Pregnancy in the Builsa District: A Focus Study in Fumbisi.	2013 Ghana	Cross-sectional study	Poverty, prostitution, inadequate sex education, inadequate family support.
The cause and effect of teenage pregnancy: case of kontagora local government area in niger state, northern part of nigeria	2013 Nigeria.	Cross-sectional study	Early sexual debut, socio-economic background, early marriage and traditional gender roles, peer pressure, lack of sex education and non-used of contraceptive during sexual intercourse.
Poverty the Cause of Teenage Pregnancy in Thulamela Municipality	2015 south Africa	Cross-sectional study	Poverty, low socio-economic family status, lack of parental support, inadequate sex education from parents, peer influence.
The Effects of Teenage Pregnancy on the Educational Attainment of Girls at Chorkor, a Suburb of Accra	2013 Ghana	Qualitative study	Poor parenting, poverty, peer influence and school dropout.