Research on Repeated Abortion: State of the Field: 1973–1979

Abstract

In January of 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of abortion being the decision between a woman and her physician. During 1973 only 12% of all abortions performed were repetitions; in 1979 this rate climbed to 23%. A careful review of the literature indicates that the rates of repeated abortion in this country are approaching the “epidemic recidivism” rates found in Asian and European nations. Up to this point, the research on such recidivism has concentrated almost entirely on demographic features. This approach has contributed very little to identifying the repeated aborter before the fact. The present paper includes an extensive review of the current research conducted in a number of countries. Comparisons of repeated aborters shed some light on primary reasons for repeated abortions, such as failure of method of birth control, personal failure at applications, and abortion as a method of contraception. The paper examined the methodological and data collection problems in current demographic studies. Suggestions for a more productive approach are mentioned.