Are Adolescent Mothers Just Single Mothers?

The central question in this study is: Can the greater likelihood that adolescent mothers are also single mothers account for their relative disadvantage in household income during the 5 years following the birth? The major findings are that single motherhood accounts for a substantial portion of this disadvantage, but not for all of it. In particular, differences remain between adolescent mothers and women who give birth between ages 21 to 24 after single motherhood is taken into account. Other findings include: (a) among whites, delaying motherhood until age 25 or later appears to result in economic advantage, but not among African Americans; and (b) being single at the time of the birth confers a lingering economic disadvantage upon African Americans, but not upon Whites for whom only current marital status affects economic well-being.