Child outcomes from young motherhood

There is considerable evidence that childbearing at a young age is associated with poorer outcomes for both mother and child.

Young Motherhood and Child Outcomes is a report by Bruce Bradley from the Social Policy Research Centre using data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). It shows that children aged 4-5 years whose mothers were under 25 when they were born have distinctly lower levels of functioning than those with older mothers and that this disadvantage carries through to education and labour market outcomes. Those born when their mother was in her teens are much less likely to be still in school from 16 to 18 years of age.

However, international research, supported by this study, suggests that children born to young mothers might still have had poor outcomes even if their mother had delayed their childbearing. "It is quite possible that such associations could arise because of the different characteristics of the mothers (and fathers) who have their children when young."