1. Research & Evaluation
  2. Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program Evaluations

Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program Evaluations

Since 2010, the Office of Adolescent Health (OAH), now part of the Office of Population Affairs (OPA), has conducted evaluations as part of its Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) grant program. At OPA, TPP evaluations build upon previous evidence. Current TPP research projects aim to provide greater detail about how the different components of TPP programs work together. This deeper view ideally can help improve how communities approach TPP efforts, bring context to research, and strengthen how new programs are designed.

What We Hope to Learn About TPP

OPA TPP evaluations build upon the evidence base learned from grantee and federal evaluations. OPA is conducting the following research studies: 

  1. Components Evaluation of REAL Essentials Curriculum: A descriptive outcome and implementation study aimed at identifying, measuring, and evaluating the effectiveness of core components of the REAL Essentials curriculum.
  2. Core Components Research: This project is developing a research agenda and conducting foundational research in the area of core components. The research agenda will detail approaches to identify the definition of core components, examine popular TPP programs and classify the core components that make up these programs, and identify secondary analyses that would further the knowledge base around core components.

What We Have Learned So Far About TPP Programs

OPA’s TPP research portfolio includes results from evaluations of individual TPP grant recipients in the FY 2010-2014 and FY 2015-2019 cohorts. Additionally, the American Journal of Public Health published a special issue on TPP efforts that featured some of the results from the earlier cohort. In March 2014, the Journal of Adolescent Health released a supplement on implementing evidence-based TPP programs. Beyond these grantee-led evaluation efforts, OPA also sponsored overarching research studies on TPP.

  1. TPP Implementation Study: This study explores how grant recipients awarded in 2020 and 2021 implement the components of the TPP20 Tier 1 Optimally Changing the Map and Tier 2 Innovation Network grant programs.
  2. TPP Replication Study: Initiated in 2010, this study examines whether three program models that were commonly chosen by TPP grant recipients and widely implemented by organizations working to prevent teen pregnancy can achieve impacts with different populations and settings.
  3. Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Approaches (PPA) Study: The PPA study was an experimental study focused on assessing the implementation and impacts of innovative strategies and untested approaches for preventing teenage pregnancy.
  4. Sustainability Study of Former TPP Programs: This study investigated whether and in what from programs were able to continue operating after federal funding ended.
  5. Meta-Analysis of Federally Funded TPP Programs: This project made use of data from evaluations already completed by OPA and the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Personal Responsibility Program (PREP). Looking across these evaluations allowed researchers to explore which factors shaped the effectiveness of TPP programs. 
  6. Evaluation of the TPP Tier 1B Grant Program: This evaluation looked collectively at the efforts of the Tier 1B TPP grant recipients to scale up TPP programs. It included a qualitative study to understand experiences of programs trying to reach youth who are most at risk for teen pregnancy. 
  7. Making Proud Choices! Impact Evaluation: This cluster randomized controlled trial assessed effectiveness of the evidence-based program on several risk and protective factors and sexual behaviors. 
  8. The Impact of Brief Interventions with Condom Demonstrations: This systematic review examined whether there is evidence that brief interventions that include condom demonstration lessons have impacts on behavioral and nonbehavioral outcomes for youth and young adults.

TPP Innovation Grants Show Positive Results

OPA funded the development and rigorous evaluation of TPP programs to expand the available research and evidence base in the field of teen pregnancy prevention. OPA’s TPP Tier 2 grant recipients develop, replicate, refine, and rigorously evaluate programs and innovative strategies to reduce teen pregnancy.

These TPP programs address gaps in the existing evidence, reduce disparities in teen pregnancy and associated sexual and reproductive health outcomes, and/or serve diverse communities. Individually, these TPP programs provide new research on specific types of innovative practices (e.g., using technology to deliver information, joint family programming) or specific populations and settings (e.g., LGBT+ students, rural areas), which can support greater equity in TPP programming.