F1000Research F1000Research 2046-1402 F1000 Research Limited London, UK 10.12688/f1000research.28440.1 Research Article Articles Effect of teaching leadership styles on the prevention of adolescence pregnancy: a case study conducted at Universidad César Vallejo, Peru

[version 1; peer review: 1 approved with reservations]

 Delgado Bardales José Manuel Data Curation Investigation Methodology Project Administration Supervision Validation Writing – Original Draft Preparation Writing – Review & Editing a 1 Rubio Luna Victoria Edward Freddy Investigation Methodology Project Administration Writing – Original Draft Preparation https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3763-5566 1 Vega Orfelina Valera Investigation Methodology Project Administration Writing – Original Draft Preparation 2 Contreras Julián Rosa Mabel Conceptualization Investigation Methodology Project Administration Supervision Validation Writing – Original Draft Preparation Writing – Review & Editing https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0196-1351 b 1 Palomino Alvarado Gabriela del Pilar Investigation Methodology Project Administration Writing – Original Draft Preparation https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2126-2769 1 Sánchez Dávila Keller Investigation Methodology Project Administration Writing – Original Draft Preparation https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3911-3806 1 Rodríguez Espejo Yoni Meni Investigation Methodology Writing – Original Draft Preparation 2 Lowy Daniel A. Supervision Writing – Original Draft Preparation Writing – Review & Editing 3 4 5 Universidad César Vallejo, Tarapoto, Peru Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Tarapoto, Peru Genesis Sustainable Future Ltd., Sárospatak, 3950, Hungary Dama Research Center limited, Kowloon, Hong Kong Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria, VA, USA jmdelgadob@ucvvirtual.edu.pe rcontrerasj@ucv.edu.pe

No competing interests were disclosed.

 24 3 2021 2021 10 239 11 3 2021 Copyright: © 2021 Delgado Bardales JM et al. 2021 This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Background: In this study we aimed to determine the effect of university teaching and leadership styles at Universidad César Vallejo on the prevention of adolescence pregnancy.

Methods: We performed a non-experimental, quantitative, cross-sectional study, with a correlational descriptive design using a survey. Participants were students in classes enrolled in the starting two semesters at Universidad César Vallejo, Peru. The questionnaire comprised three sections: (I) General demographic data, (II) Teacher leadership styles, and (III) Pregnancy prevention teachings.

Results: According to the students (n=793), teaching leadership styles are of three types: Laissez faire, transactional, and transformational. Types of pregnancy prevention from the students’ standpoint are the following: "high" level of "primary prevention" (44.4%), "medium" level of "tertiary prevention" (36.6%), and "high" level of "secondary prevention" (36.2%). Chi-Square test revealed that the three styles of leadership significantly affect the prevention of pregnancy: transformational (X 2 = 136.390), transactional (X 2 = 95.539), and Laissez Faire (X 2 = 80.557) (p <0.05). Overall, there is a significant impact of university teaching leadership on pregnancy prevention among higher education students (X 2 = 110,634, p = 0.0000), with a significance level of 5%.

Conclusions: It can be concluded that for college students, teaching leadership style significantly affects the prevention of adolescent pregnancy.

 leadership university teacher pregnancy prevention public health The author(s) declared that no grants were involved in supporting this work. Introduction

In low- and middle-income countries, there are about 16 million young women, aged 15–19, and approximately 1 million girls less than 15 years old, who give birth over one year. Problems that occur during pregnancy and childbirth are the second leading cause of death of these women, worldwide. Also, every year about 3 million girls aged 15–19 undergo unsafe abortions ( UNICEF, 2014). For this reason, pregnancy of adolescents and young women is a significant public health issue in South America, as it reduces the chances of educational development of pregnant woman and by this, it amplifies the risk of their poverty. To address these issues, there is an increasing number of studies that examine the role of teachers and lecturers in sexual education and prevention in the Latin American region ( Anzoategui, 2015; Arroyave et al., 2015; Newman et al., 2008; Rosario, 2012). According to Arroyave & co-workers (2015), students are aware of the demanding responsibility of motherhood and fatherhood, nevertheless, they do not practice safe sex. Ramírez & Contreras (2013) emphasized that unfortunately, high school and university professors do not have sufficient knowledge related to this topic, for example, the ways in which HIV is transmitted. Therefore, they are not prepared to provide efficient sexual education. Reátegui & Carranza (2016) concluded that teaching style was likely the most important contributor to preventing adolescent pregnancy. Here, we present a correlation analysis between teaching leadership styles (transformational, transactional, and laissez faire) and the prevention of adolescence pregnancy among university students at Universidad César Vallejo, in Peru.

 Methods Study design

We performed a non-experimental, quantitative, cross-sectional study, with a correlational descriptive design.

 Setting

The study was conducted from June 8, 2018 to July 20, 2018. Questionnaires were handed to students every Friday. Survey questions were administered in the classrooms, on the Universidad César Vallejo campus, a subsidiary on the Tarapoto campus. Average time of 25 min was allowed for completing the questionnaires.

 Eligibility criteria

To strive for completeness and diversity, we invited all students in person during classes enrolled in the starting two semesters at Universidad César Vallejo, Peru. Students were only included if they (1) agreed to participate in the study voluntarily; and (2) had physical and mental capacity to answer the questionnaires.

 Sample size

Our sample population consisted of 793 students, which equaled all students within the eligibility criteria.

 Data collection

Our questionnaire described below was validated by exploring (i) ACE (Adverse childhood experiences), including possible emotional, physical, or sexual abuse experienced at the age of less than 18 years; this was tested in a randomized manner, on 40 students (this number represents 5% of the total number of students tested in our study); next a (ii) preliminary pilot testing was performed by engaging 80 students (this number represents 10% of the total number of students tested in our study), and finally, (iii) reliability testing was conducted on internal consistency, test-retest, and inter-rater. Result of our preliminary testing validated the survey, such that no changes had to be implemented.

The questionnaire comprised three sections: (I) General demographic data, (II) Teacher leadership styles, and (III) Pregnancy prevention teachings. Sections II and III had a rating scale from 1 to 5, according to the Likert scale ( Boone & Boone, 2012). A copy of the questionnaire can be retrieved from the Extended data ( Contreras & Lowy, 2020).

Section II contained 17 questions for transformational leadership, 14 questions for transactional leadership, and 9 for laissez faire leadership, to sum to a total of 40 questions. Based on results of section II, teaching leadership styles were grouped into three categories according to Vásquez (2012), namely (i) Transformational (high control and low acceptance), (ii) Transactional (high control and high acceptance), and (iii) Laissez faire (low control and high acceptance) ( Table 1).

Distribution of minimum, maximum, and low, medium, and high-level scores for each dimension of the leadership styles.
Dimensions Max. score Min. score Low Medium High
Transformational 85 17 20 -41 42 – 63 64 – 85
Transactional 70 14 14 – 32 33 – 51 52 – 70
Laissez-faire 45 9 9 – 21 22 – 33 34 – 45
Total 200 40 40 – 93 94 - 146 147 - 200

Section III addressed 10 questions on primary prevention, 5 questions on secondary prevention, and 4 questions on tertiary prevention. Answers allowed to assess, whether the teacher provided low, medium, or high level teaching for each type of prevention, as follows: for > 63, high teaching level was assigned; at ≤ 63-42, medium teaching level was considered; while < 42 corresponded to low teaching level .

 Statistical analysis

We applied Chi-Square for statistical analysis, using SPSS (version 26) to reveal possible correlations between teaching leadership styles and prevention of adolescence pregnancy. Significant correlations were accepted at the p <0.05 level, as widely applied in public health-related studies.

 Ethical approval

The committee of the Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad César Vallejo approved this study (021-2018-VI-UCV) on April 16, 2018. All participants were informed on the scope and content of the survey, on their rights as participants, and for additional information and possible questions, they were provided the name and electronic address of a designated contact person. All participants signed a consent form.

 Results

Participant characteristics are listed in Table 2.

Sociodemographic characteristics of participating students enrolled in semesters 1 and 2, in 2018 (n=793).
Characteristics N %
Age, years
            16–19 671 84.6
            20–23 73 9.2
            24–27 34 4.3
            ≥ 28 15 1.9
Gender
            Female 462 58.3
            Male 331 41.7
Origin
            Urban 623 78.6
            Rural 159 20.1
            Urban – marginal 11 1.4
Religion
            Catholic 541 68.2
            Evangelic 101 12.7
            Atheist 33 4.2
            Other 118 14.9

Based on the survey test results, there is no significant difference between the distribution of the various teaching leadership styles, e.g., according to students’ insight, the transformational, transactional, and laissez daire styles were 50.4, 51.5, and 55.5, respectively, at high perspective level ( Table 3).

Distribution of teaching leadership styles based on student survey results.
Student perspective Transformational Transactional Laissez faire
Fi % Fi % Fi %
High 400 50.4 408 51.5 440 55.5
Medium 343 43.3 351 44.3 309 39.0
Low 50 6.3 34 4.3 44 5.5
Total 793 100.0 793 100.0 793 100.0

We found that the types of pregnancy prevention, used by students were the following: 44.4% apply “high” level of “primary prevention”, 36.6% “medium” level of “tertiary prevention,” while 36.2% utilize a “low” level of “secondary prevention” ( Table 4).

Level of pregnancy prevention exercised by students over the first semester.
Level of prevention First Second Third
Fi % Fi % Fi %
High 352 44.4 287 36.2 295 37.2
Medium 267 33.7 273 34.4 290 36.6
Low 174 21.9 233 29.4 208 26.2
Total 793 100.0 793 100.0 793 100.0

Via the non-parametric Chi square test, we determined that leadership styles transformational, Transactional, and Laissez Faire significantly impact the prevention of pregnancy (X2 = 136.390, p = 0.0000; X2 = 95.539, p = 0.0000; and X2 = 80.557, p = 0.0000, respectively) ( Table 5). We evidenced a substantial correlation between the leadership variable and prevention of pregnancy of higher education students (X2 = 110.634; p = 0.0000 <0.05). Our results agree with findings by Jordán & Blanco (2015), i.e., that health education is unsatisfactory in the higher education system.

Evaluation of university teaching leadership style, which significantly affects the prevention of pregnancy of students <bold>at the beginning of</bold> their higher education studies in the San Martín region (year 2018).
Teaching leadership style Level of prevention Total X2 p < 0,05
High Medium Low
Transformational
High 217 65 118 400 X2 =136,390
Low 7 32 11 50
Medium 77 79 187 343 p =0,0000
Total 301 176 316 793
Transactional
High 210 72 126 408 X2 =95,539
Low 8 18 8 34
Medium 83 86 182 351 p =0,0000
Total 301 176 316 793
Laissez Faire
High 216 69 155 440 X2 =80,557
Low 7 29 8 44
Medium 78 78 153 309 p =0,0000
Total 301 176 316 793
Discussion

Leadership implies an influential relationship between two or more people; therefore, the leadership of teachers constitutes a fundamental axis in education, training, and personal-social development of college students. Classroom education is triggered by a series of interactions between teachers and students, among students, and between diverse groups of students, all these collaborations being guided by rules of coexistence. Overall, these processes enable learning and integral development of students. Also important is the effectiveness of teachers in creating an appropriate climate for learning and collaboration.

Direct relationship between teaching leadership and coexistence sets the necessary characteristics for reducing pregnancy of college students and by this, to avoid consequences of desertion, low learning, discrimination, and more importantly, to prevent perinatal maternal morbidity and mortality. Our study documents the significant interconnection between leadership variables and pregnancy prevention of higher education students. Teaching leadership has been demonstrated as a key factor in pregnancy prevention, regardless of leadership style. From students’ perspective, the leadership style of university teachers is rated as 55.5% high level Laissez Faire leadership. Regarding types of pregnancy prevention, we found that 44.4% are a result of teachers high level instruction of primary prevention.

Limitations

Limitations and bias may be related to answers provided by college students in the presence of their teacher, or because of misinterpretation/misunderstanding of some questions. This inconvenience was avoided by allowing students to answer questions in the absence of the teacher and providing the research team’s assistance in clarifying doubts or mistakes that may arise. Hence, the research group contributed to elucidate unclear situations that occur during the survey. Directors of César Vallejo University authorized the development of the study and approved the time for its application.

 Generalizability

Results can be considered as part of a general situation that exists at different universities of the country, as students starting their studies have the highest dropout rate, caused by pregnancy. In addition, the teacher is not only the facilitator of learning, but also a dynamic person, who exercises leadership by advising, mentoring, and guiding university students toward sustainable learning. Teachers are engaged active human beings, who can make positive decisions on students’ lives.

 Conclusions

Based on our statistical analysis, one can conclude that for college students, teaching leadership style significantly affects the prevention of adolescent pregnancy. We believe that this is an important finding, which complements a prior study ( Jordán & Blanco, 2015) that focused on the importance of health education in the higher education system.

 Data availability Underlying data

Figshare: Datasets, https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13385612.v1 ( Contreras, 2020).

 Extended data

Figshare: Survey, https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13385405.v1 ( Contreras & Lowy, 2020).

Data are available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license (CC-BY 4.0).

 Acknowledgments

The authors express special thanks to all members of the Genesis Sustainable Future, Ltd., Sárospatak, Hungary, for their assistance in manuscript preparation and statistical analysis.

 Anzoategui J : Plan de Intervención Educativo para la Prevención de Embarazo en la Adolescencia. El Centro de Tesis, Documentos, Publicaciones y Recursos Educativos más amplio de la Red. Términos y Condiciones. 2015; (Accessed: January 21, 2021.). Reference Source Arroyave K Cuartas Y García J : Concepciones sobre la maternidad y paternidad en adolescentes de la Institución Educativa Jaime Salazar Robledo.Colombia. 2015;7–8. (Accessed on January15, 2021). Reference Source Boone HN Boone DA : Analyzing likert data. J of extension. 2012;50(2):1–5. Reference Source Contreras: Datasets. figshare. Dataset.2020. http://www.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13385612.v1 Contreras Lowy DA : Survey. figshare. Journal contribution. 2020. http://www.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13385405.v1 Jordán Padrón M Blanco Pereira ME : Educación sanitaria integral del adolescente en el Instituto Preuniversitario Urbano José Luis Dubrocq, de Matanzas.Revista Médica Electrónica. 2015;37(3):197–206. Reference Source Newman K Harrison L Dashiff C : Relaciones entre los tipos de padres y comportamientos de riesgo en la salud del adolescente: una revisión bibliográfica integrada. Rev Latino-América Enfermagem. 2008;16(1):142–150. 10.1590/S0104-11692008000100022 Ramírez E Contreras G : Las competencias docentes de los profesores del nivel medio superior sobre el tema de sexualidad y el VIH/SIDA. (Tesis de licenciatura). Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México. México. 2013. 2013; (Accessed: January 6, 2021.). Reference Source Reátegui B Carranza K : Influencia del liderazgo docente en la prevención del embarazo adolescente en estudiantes del 5to año de secundaria de la Institución Educativa “Francisco Izquierdo Ríos”, distrito Morales, región San Martín, año 2016.(Tesis de licenciatura). Universidad Nacional de San Martín Tarapoto. Perú. Recuperado de.2016; (Accessed: November 7, 2020.). Reference Source Rosario L : Estilos de liderazgo de los maestros y maestras de salud escolar del nivel secundario en la implantación del programa de educación en salud escolar. Universidad del Turabo”. (Ph.D. Dissertation). Escuela de Educación. Puerto Rico. 2012; (Accessed: December 12, 2020.). UNICEF: Vivencias y relatos sobre el embarazo en adolescentes. Una aproximación a los factores culturales, sociales y emocionales a partir de un estudio en seis países de la región informe final. Oficina Regional para América Latina y el Caribe. Panamá. 2014; (Accessed: January 18, 2021.). Reference Source Vásquez D : Estilos de liderazgo de los docentes del nivel secundario de una institución educativa del distrito de la Perla-Callao.(Tesis de maestría). Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola. Facultad de Educación Programa Académico de Maestría en Educación para Docentes de la Región Callao. Lima Perú. 2012. Reference Source 10.5256/f1000research.31476.r128635 Reviewer response for version 1 Azin Seyed Ali 1 Referee https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3629-0869 Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research (ACECR), Tehran, Iran

Competing interests: No competing interests were disclosed.

 14 4 2022 Copyright: © 2022 Azin SA 2022 This is an open access peer review report distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. recommendation approve-with-reservations

Although the result of the research seems logical, the article has many ambiguities:

Teaching leadership styles are described very briefly. Also, "Types of pregnancy prevention" is not clear at all. In both cases, if the reader does not refer to the text of the questionnaire, he/she cannot get a clear picture of the concepts stated in the article; for instance, in public health discourse, primary pregnancy prevention often refers to the use of contraceptives.

Why and how was the ACE questionnaire used to develop and validate the research tool?

The content of the tables also does not help much to clear up the ambiguity. For example, the basis of the cut-off points for the "teaching level" score is not clear.

 Overall, it seems that in order to communicate better with the reader, the article needs to be seriously revised.

Is the work clearly and accurately presented and does it cite the current literature?

No

If applicable, is the statistical analysis and its interpretation appropriate?

Partly

Are all the source data underlying the results available to ensure full reproducibility?

Partly

Is the study design appropriate and is the work technically sound?

Partly

Are the conclusions drawn adequately supported by the results?

Yes

Are sufficient details of methods and analysis provided to allow replication by others?

No

Reviewer Expertise:

Social Medicine/Sexual Health, Sexual Medicine

I confirm that I have read this submission and believe that I have an appropriate level of expertise to confirm that it is of an acceptable scientific standard, however I have significant reservations, as outlined above.