Schooling and Family Planning Knowledge among Unmarried Adolescent Females in Ethiopia

Jennifer Yarger, University of California, San Francisco
Mara Decker, University of California, San Francisco
Claire Brindis, University of California, San Francisco

Knowledge of family planning is considered essential for adopting effective contraceptive behavior. In this paper we examined the relationship between schooling and family planning knowledge among unmarried adolescent females in Ethiopia. We also assessed the relationship between schooling and exposure to family planning messages through mass media and community health workers, which is one possible pathway between schooling and family planning knowledge. We analyzed data from the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) for a sample of unmarried females aged 15–19 (n=3,051). Using multivariate logistic regression, we found that schooling—both attendance and primary school completion—is consistently positively associated with exposure to family planning messages and family planning knowledge. Our findings suggest that exposure to family planning messages through mass media may be one pathway linking schooling and family planning knowledge, although more research is needed to test this and other possible mechanisms.