AGI studies: The Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI) has published several studies examining reasons for abortions in the United States. Two studies surveyed women obtaining abortions; these were conducted in 1987 and 2004. A third survey conducted in 2000-2001 surveyed abortion seekers about contraceptive use; this study provided limited data on reasons for abortions. These studies are discussed in chronological order.
The 1987 AGI study (published in 1988)[3] surveyed 1,900 women who had abortions. The results of this survey are among the most commonly cited figures regarding reasons for abortions in the United States. The 1,773 women who responded gave an average of 3.7 reasons from the list, with the most important reasons cited by respondents tabulated below. It should be noted that only rounded percentages, not raw numbers, were provided; an AGI review article in 1998 [4] cited the 1988 study but gave slightly different figures, shown below in parenthesis (the parenthetical figure for rape and incest is a range of uncertainty derived from breakdowns in the 1988 report).
The Guttmacher Institute in 1968 was founded as the "Center for Family Planning Program Development", a semi-autonomous division of The Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The Center was renamed in memory of Alan Frank Guttmacher, an Ob/Gyn and former president of Planned Parenthood, and the Guttmacher Institute became an independent, not-for-profit corporation in 1977.[3] Guttmacher's four decades of experience claims to demonstrate that scientific evidence — when reliably collected and analyzed, compellingly presented and systematically disseminated — can make a difference in policies, programs, and medical practice.
REASONS GIVEN FOR ABORTIONS: AGI SURVEY, 2004 [6] reason % of abortions,
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most important reason
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rape <0.5
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incest (<0.5)
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mother has health problems 4
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possible fetal health problems 3
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unready 25
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is too immature or young to have child 7
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woman's parents want her to have abortion <0.5
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has problems with relationship or wants to avoid single parenthood 8
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husband or partner wants her to have abortion <0.5
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has all the children she wanted or all children are grown 19
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can't afford baby now 23
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doesn't want others to know she had relations or is pregnant <0.5
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other 6
Additional Guttmacher Stats...
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Nearly half of all pregnancies to American women are unintended; four in 10 of these end in abortion.
- About half of American women have experienced an unintended pregnancy, and at current rates more than one-third (35%) will have had an abortion by age 45.
- Overall unintended pregnancy rates have stagnated over the past decade, yet unintended pregnancy increased by 29% among poor women while decreasing 20% among higher-income women.
- In 2005, 1.21 million abortions were performed, down from 1.31 million abortions in 2000.
- Nine in 10 abortions occur in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
A broad cross section of U.S. women have abortions:
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56% of women having abortions are in their 20s;
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61% have one or more children;
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67% have never married;
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57% are economically disadvantaged;
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88% live in a metropolitan area; and
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78% report a religious affiliation.