In the United States at the end of the twentieth century, 32 percent of all babies were born to unwed mothers. Unmarried mothers are not stigmatized as they were twenty years ago when teen girls gave birth in secret, however. In fact, out-of-wedlock childbearing has been popularized by unwed celebrity mothers such as Jodie Foster and Rosie O’Donnell. In U.S. high schools, pregnant girls can become cheerleaders and members of the student council. Some high schools even offer day care for student-mothers.

Many analysts argue that society’s acceptance of out-of-wedlock childbearing has encouraged more teens to become parents without getting married. They claim that such acceptance leads to more of the social and economic problems that they attribute to teenage pregnancy. Teenage mothers who bear children out-of-wedlock rarely continue with their education, they contend, and end up...