| Date | November 2016 | Marks available | 10 | Reference code | 16N.Paper 3.HL.TZ0.2 |
| Level | HL only | Paper | Paper 3 | Time zone | TZ0 |
| Command term | Evaluate | Question number | 2 | Adapted from | N/A |
Question
The stimulus material below is based on a research article that describes some of the positive experiences of teenage motherhood that can occur in spite of challenges to the mothers’ future plans.
In the United Kingdom, there is a general concern about teenage pregnancy because it is often associated with negative outcomes such as poverty, interrupted education and early entrance into the welfare system.
The aim of this study was to investigate how teenage mothers experienced motherhood and how this had influenced their expectations of the future. The two female researchers already worked with teenage mothers in a city in the United Kingdom before the study. According to them, previous research has primarily focused on the disadvantages of early motherhood, and not on how young mothers can overcome obstacles, even gaining psychological benefit from having a child.
Young mothers were identified based on specific criteria (for example, the child was born before the mother was twenty and was living with her). The mothers were found through a patient database of family doctors. Seventeen mothers were selected initially and nine agreed to be part of this purposive sample. The local research ethics committee gave ethical approval for the study. The participants were all informed about the study and their rights. They all gave consent to participate. The names of the participants were changed in the final report.
The researchers carried out semi-structured interviews in the participants’ homes. The interviews were audio-recorded and later transcribed verbatim to allow for inductive content analysis.
The results showed that at this point in their lives the young mothers were very positive about their experience of motherhood in spite of the challenges. Most of them had felt an immediate bond with the baby once it was born. Some said it was the right decision to keep the baby and that being a mother had made them “grow up”. Some said that having responsibility for the baby made them more ambitious and determined to have a career although the pregnancy had for a time forced them to stop their education or work.
The researchers concluded that early motherhood does not necessarily have only negative outcomes. It may also be the turning point to maturity and development of a career, especially if young mothers are supported by family, health professionals and society.
[Source: Adapted from Clare J. Seamark and Pamela Lings, “Positive experiences of teenage motherhood:
a qualitative study.” British Journal of General Practice, 2004, 54, 813–818.]
Evaluate the purposive sampling technique used in this study.
Markscheme
Refer to the paper 3 markbands when awarding marks.
The command term “evaluate” requires candidates to make an appraisal by weighing up the strengths and limitations of the purposive sampling technique used in the study. Although a discussion of both strengths and limitations is required, it does not have to be evenly balanced to gain high marks.
Responses that use the term “experiment” as a generic term for “study” should not be penalized.
The purposive sample is constructed to serve a specific need or purpose. In this study, the researchers chose the participants because they met salient characteristics that are relevant to the research study (selection criteria). For example, in this study, the mother should have given birth to the child before she was twenty and the child should live with her.
Strengths of the purposive sampling method could include, but are not limited to:
- Because the participants accurately represent the topic under investigation they could provide rich data.
- It is relatively easy to select a sample once the selection criteria are clear. In this study, seventeen potential participants were found through a database but only nine of them agreed to be interviewed. It is a small sample but the participants all fit the selection criteria and eventually, more participants could be recruited in the same way or perhaps, through snowballing.
Limitations of the purposive sampling method could include, but are not limited to:
- Sampling may be biased. For example, in this study only nine out of seventeen originally found to match the selection criteria agreed to participate. It could be that they were the ones who were particularly positive about their experience as a young mother.
- The sample is not representative in a statistical sense because it is based on specific criteria so it is difficult to generalize. However, in this qualitative study representational or theoretical generalization could be considered.
Candidates may refer to other sampling methods but this should only be credited if it is done as part of their evaluation of the purposive sampling method used in this study.
Responses that refer to only strengths or only limitations of the purposive sampling method used in this study should be awarded up to a maximum of [5].
