Social stigma and disclosure about induced abortion: Results from an exploratory study

Abstract

It is well recognised that unsafe abortions have significant implications for women's physical health; however, women's perceptions and experiences with abortion-related stigma and disclosure about abortion are not well understood. This paper examines the presence and intensity of abortion stigma in five countries, and seeks to understand how stigma is perceived and experienced by women who terminate an unintended pregnancy and influences her subsequent disclosure behaviours. The paper is based upon focus groups and semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with women and men in Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru and the United States (USA) in 2006. The stigma of abortion was perceived similarly in both legally liberal and restrictive settings although it was more evident in countries where abortion is highly restricted. Personal accounts of experienced stigma were limited, although participants cited numerous social consequences of having an abortion. Abortion-related stigma played an important role in disclosure of individual abortion behaviour.

Keywords:

• social stigma
• induced abortion
• disclosure
• unintended pregnancy
• secrecy

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their significant contributions in strengthening this manuscript.

Notes

1. The IDI guide covered a variety of topics not mentioned here. Topics listed are those relevant to this analysis.

2. Pregnancy information was not available for female IDI participants in the USA. Participants were only asked if they had ever had a live birth and if they had ever had an abortion. They were not asked about lifetime number of pregnancies.

3. Spanish language documents were read in Spanish but coded with the English language codes for ease of organisation. Coded data were then translated into English to facilitate the analysis process and inclusion of quotes in the final manuscript.

4. Data collection occurred in Mexico City prior to the liberalisation of the abortion law in 2007.

5. Scientific literature shows that induced abortion is not a risk factor for cancer and that safe abortion is not associated with infertility (Atrash and Hogue 1990, National Cancer Institute 2003).