Teenage pregnancy rate (45.9/1,000 in 1999) among
15—19-year-olds has, during 1976 to 1999, been markedly
higher in Iceland than in other Nordic countries. The
reproductive pattern among Icelandic teenagers has
been characterized by choosing to carry pregnancy to
term rather than having an abortion (Bender, Geirsson,
& Kosunen, 2003). Contradictory to other Nordic
countries it was, through the years, accepted in Iceland
to become a mother at young age.
However, the pattern has been changing, and
recently, (1996 to 1999) about half of all teenage
pregnancies end in an abortion. Although the pregnancy
rate continued to decline during 1976 to 1999,
the abortion rate rose sharply and during 1996 to
1999, this rate exceeded the figures in the other