Abstract
Nearly 20% of the 208 million pregnancies that occur annually are aborted. More than
half of these (21.6 million) are unsafe, resulting in 47,000 abortion-related deaths
each year. Accurate reports on the prevalence of abortion, the conditions under which
it occurs, and the experiences women have in obtaining abortions are essential to
addressing unsafe abortion globally. It is difficult, however, to obtain accurate
and reliable reports of attitudes and practices given that abortion is often controversial
and stigmatized, even in settings where it is legal. To improve the understanding
and measurement of abortion, specific considerations are needed throughout all stages
of the planning, design, and implementation of research on abortion: Establishment
of strong local partnerships, knowledge of local culture, integration of innovative
methodologies, and approaches that may facilitate better reporting. This paper draws
on the authors’ collaborative research experiences conducting abortion-related studies
using clinic- and community-based samples in five diverse settings (Poland, Zanzibar,
Mexico City, the Philippines, and Bangladesh). The purpose of this paper is to share
insights and lessons learned with new and established researchers to inform the development
and implementation of abortion-related research. The paper discusses the unique challenges
of conducting abortion-related research and key considerations for the design and
implementation of abortion research, both to maximize data quality and to frame inferences
from this research appropriately.
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Biography
Jessica D. Gipson, MPH, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Public Health. Her research focuses on sexual and reproductive health decision-making and outcomes.
Biography
Davida Becker, PhD, is a Research Scholar at the Center for the Study of Women at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her research focuses on the accessibility and quality of reproductive health services and disparities in reproductive health outcomes.
Biography
Joanna Z. Mishtal, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida. Her current research, situated in Ireland and at the European Union, examines the role of conscience-based objection in the provision of reproductive health services.
Biography
Alison H. Norris, MD, PhD, was an Ellertson Fellow from 2008–2010. At the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, MD, she pursues multi-method research on sexual and reproductive health epidemiology in under served women and men.
Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
January 20,
2011
Received in revised form:
January 20,
2011
Received:
October 22,
2010
Identification
Copyright
© 2011 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
