Blog Post 2: Social Learning

I think the concept of social learning accounts for the large number of teenage pregnancies in America today. The notion of social learning asserts that audiences imitate the types of behavior that they observe in the media. The messages and lifestyles portrayed in television, movies, and music often shape what audiences recognize as responsible and acceptable behavior. For this reason, the media has a large responsibility in determining the type of content that it allows to entertain us.

In recent years, there have been many television shows that portray single teenage mothers in society such as MTV's Sixteen and Pregnant and The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Consequently, 750,000 teenagers become pregnant each year in the U.S. (courtesy of http://www.pregnantteenhelp.org/articles1.html). Sex is portrayed in these shows as being socially acceptable, and therefore the teens who watch these programs are mimicking what the see. Even Bristol Palin, daughter of prominent U.S. politician Sarah Palin, has become famous in the U.S. due to her recent teenage pregnancy. What other qualifications would justify her being a contestant on Dancing With the Stars? It's sad that these programs and individuals make teenage pregnancy seem so casual and nonchalant when it's really an epidemic that is a hardship for many families around the country.


Here is a clip from MTV's Sixteen and Pregnant (courtesy of youtube):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12MrdhGohk8