Title: A culture of abortion?

POPLINE Document Number: 168855

Author(s):

Shears KH

Source citation:

Network, 2002;21(4):34-5.

Abstract:

For most of the history of the Soviet Union, women relied primarily on induced abortion to control their fertility. Many believed that the Soviet "culture of abortion" was so ingrained that abortion rates would be slow to decline, regardless of the availability of contraceptives. However, the states in eastern and Central Europe and Central Asia during the past decade suggests otherwise. It is noted that since the late 1980s, modern contraceptives have been the main method of controlling fertility. As the use of modern contraceptives roughly doubled in Russia from 1988-97, abortion rates were cut in half. Since 1994, the number of abortions has dropped more sharply than the number of births, suggesting that women have been increasingly successful in preventing unplanned pregnancies. Moreover, results from reproductive health surveys in 1996 and 1999, as well as from other surveys conducted in former Soviet republics, cast doubt on the theory of a deeply entrenched "culture of abortion". Likewise, the assumption that many Russian providers prefer performing abortions to family planning counseling because abortions are more profitable has been overstated.

Keywords:

USSR
Literature Review
Surveys
Abortion
Abortion Rate
Culture
Contraceptive Availability
Program Accessibility
Developing Countries
Sampling Studies
Studies
Research Methodology
Fertility Control, Postconception
Family Planning
Contraception
Program Evaluation
Programs
Organization and Administration