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NINR-Supported Research Results in Evidence-Based Programs to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

  • In FY 2010, Congress provided funding for the President’s new Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative. Under this Initiative, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is charged with supporting the replication of teen pregnancy prevention programs determined to be effective through rigorous evaluation criteria.
  • In order to develop a list of programs eligible for funding under this Initiative, HHS contracted with an outside organization to conduct an independent review of the current evidence base for programs to prevent teen pregnancy. The review established a set of criteria that programs had to meet in order to be deemed effective, and therefore, eligible for funding.
  • The HHS review identified 28 programs as effective at preventing teen pregnancy according to these strict criteria. Of these 28 programs, several were developed and tested by NINR-supported investigators.
  • Three of these programs are listed below. More information on each of these programs can be found by clicking on the links to program websites provided in the title.
  1. “Be Proud! Be Responsible!” : Developed by Dr. Loretta Sweet Jemmott and her colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania, this program was found to effectively reduce HIV/AIDS risk behaviors in adolescents. Originally focused on African-American males, this program has been further adapted for use in multiple, diverse populations.
  2. “Be Proud! Be Responsible! Be Protective!” : Developed by Dr. Deborah Koniak-Griffin of the University of California, Los Angeles and her colleagues, and adapted from Dr. Jemmott’s program described above, this program has been demonstrated to effectively address HIV/AIDS risk behaviors in adolescent mothers.
  3. “Cuidate!” : Developed by Dr. Antonia Villarruel of the University of Michigan, in collaboration with Dr. Jemmott, this program successfully adapted the Be Proud! Be Responsible! program to effectively reduce HIV/AIDS risk behaviors in adolescent Latinos.

For more information on the President’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative and the HHS review, and to view the full list of selected programs, please see: http://www.hhs.gov/ophs/oah/prevention/research/programs/index.html.