Can a Simulation Approximate the Realities of Teen Parenting?
Theresa Gillespie and Susan Wersch Abstract Students taking part in a parent simulation for one weekend and teen mothers of real infants participated in this project. To validate the authenticity of the simulated experience, self-perception and perceptions of how others viewed the teenagers as well as lifestyle patterns and routines, were investigated. Teen mothers and the infant simulator parents experienced similar self-perceptions and perceptions of how others viewed them. The predictability of the infant simulator did affect the authenticity of the weekend parenting experience. Statistics Canada numbers indicate an increase in the teen pregnancy rates in the last six years after a significant drop during the 70 s and 80 s (Petrie, 1998). Manitoba has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Canada and in 1994 95, more than six adolescents (age 15-19) became pregnant every day in Manitoba (Manitoba Children and Youth Secretariat, 1997). Teen pregnancy is portrayed as a significant social
