Posted on 01/16/2009 10:55:06 AM PST by wagglebee
LifeNews.com Note: Dr. Wanda Franz is the president of the National Right to Life Committee and a former professor of clinical psychology at West Virginia University.
The pro-life movement in this country has been very successful in reducing the numbers of abortions and the abortion rate (the number of abortions per 1,000 women of child-bearing age). In 2005, the abortion rate was down 33% from its peak in 1980/81, the same level it had been in 1974.
If the abortion rate had not decreased from its peak value in 1980/81, but simply stayed the same, there would have been 50% more abortions in 2005: 1.8 million, instead of the actual 1.2 million.
This decrease in abortion has been greatest among adolescents and young people.
While abortions have decreased in women having their first pregnancy, the number of repeat abortions has increased. Today, 47% of all abortions are obtained by women who have already had at least one previous abortion.
In addition, most abortions occur now in the group of women who already have one living child. Thus, the demographics of abortion are changing. Today, the women, who are in need of pro-life support, are often those with families. No research has been done on this population group, until now.
A new study by Priscilla Coleman and colleagues has been published in the International Journal of Mental Health Addiction. This study uses data from the Fragile Families and Well-Being Study.
The sample was drawn from hospitals in 16 cities around the country, which had high numbers of unmarried births. The final sample consisted of families with one child. The mothers then either aborted or gave birth to a subsequent child.
The family characteristics indicated that the families met the requirement of being fragile: 87% were not married, 41% had less than a high school education, and 32% had an annual income under $15,000. Racial breakdown was 24% white, 56% black, 15% Hispanic, 1% Asian and 4% American Indian.
The ages of the participants fell into the age range when most abortions now occur, that is, 64% were between 20 and 29 years of age.
In this sample, 76.9% of the women with a subsequent pregnancy reported that the same man fathered both the first and second pregnancy. This is a surprisingly high level of stability, given the fragility of the family unit.
This study looked at the reasons women chose childbirth or abortion for their subsequent pregnancy. It is unique, in that, it examined the decision-making process in the context of the relationship with the father of the child. No other research on abortion decision-making has taken the family context into account.
This is an especially important issue for our future consideration, since so many abortions are currently performed on women with other living children, implying the presence of the father of the children.
The results of the study indicated that the most important factors in determining the women's choice to abort a second pregnancy were those associated with the father's inability or unwillingness to provide assistance in rearing the first child.
Women were significantly more likely to abort if they reported that the father of the child cannot be trusted to "watch the child for a week," "take good care of the child," "watch the child when the mothers needs to do things," "does not support the mother's way of raising the child," "does not respect the schedule and rules" for the child, etc.
In addition, it was found that mothers who were married to the father were significantly more likely to deliver the baby.
What is especially interesting are the variables that did not appear to influence the choice of abortion vs. delivery.
For example, the difficulty of raising the child, based on poor temperament of the child or the need for frequent medical intervention, did not affect the choice to abort. In addition, financial considerations were not important in the decision.
Employment and income did not predict the decision to abort. Surprisingly, aggression directed toward the mother by the father was not a factor in the choice to abort.
On the other hand, women who chose to abort the second baby, demonstrated more substance abuse following the abortion; and they were more apt to be physically abused by the father.
The results of this study are counter to the prevailing opinion that women abort because of poverty and financial considerations. Instead, these mothers were more apt to make the decision based on whether or not they would be supported in their role as a mother by a father who had already demonstrated an ability to care for one of his children.
Furthermore, marriage was a protective factor in determining the parents' decision to keep and raise their child.
This study supports the idea that abortion occurs in the context of a family. It requires both a committed mother and father to assure the choice to deliver and care for a child. Fathers are, not only important, but possibly decisive in the choice to have an abortion.
And the left totally opposed to this.
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The left believes in self actualizatin. It’s a movement of narcissists.
Depravity breeds depravity.
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I wouldn't define this as a high level of stability, given that the woman in question has aborted two of the father's children. If anything, it indicates to me that the relationship is extremely unstable.
I think it’s because women aren’t taught how to pick a good man. I have three sisters and each one recieved that instruction.
Quit hopping in the sack with any male that happens by.
My son's birth-father was in prison serving a 3-4 year sentence by the time his birth-mother found out she was pregnant with him. She already had an infant at home, and another disabled daughter living with grandmother. Talk about a "crisis pregnancy!"
I thank God every day that she decided to spare his life in spite of her circumstances.
This is not news to me, as someone who worked at a CPC for years.
If they don’t know the dad. . .
if they don’t like the dad. . .
if the dad is a flake. . .
and most importantly, if the dad wants her to abort. . .
They abort, almost every time.
I don’t blame just the fathers. These women choose to have sex with men they don’t know, don’t like, or who are flaky.
Also, in defense of fathers, there have been a handful who have tried valiantly to get their girlfriends (it’s never their wives) to keep the baby.
But men, to keep abortion rates low, wait until you are married (most of the unmarried women who came to us HAD BEEN USING BIRTH CONTROL. It DOESN’T ALWAYS WORK) and be very, very suppportive should you impregnate somebody.
Wow, what a great story!
I don’t think the first child was aborted in all of these cases. In at least some of the cases, the father’s attitude towards the first child is the reason the woman is seeking the abortion of the second. I think they are loosely using stability to mean that the man and woman are involved in a long term relationship. Apparently, instability would be when the father of the first child is different from the father of the second. Interesting information, although I do not trust this website much.
I have mostly found that woman do not want to abort, that they do so out of fear. If that fear can be alleviated, they are much more likely to go ahead with the pregnancy.
How are men to be “supportive” when the law and the culture tell them that it’s none of their business whether the woman aborts?
The men throw up their hands and say “it’s your choice, that’s what we’ve been trained to think!” and the woman is left to make the decision over the life or death of her baby all on her own conscience.
Every policy of the left (doing Satan’s bidding) is anti-family.
The family is the primary target of evil, because it is the primary threat to his victory.
#6, further comment on that quote...just because it was the same father does not mean it is a “family unit”,either.
The family is the primary target of evil, because it is the primary threat to his victory.
Absolutely correct!
Good point.
I really don’t think the issue is marriage in and of itself.
Men who make good fathers are probably much more likely to get married. Men who continue a long term relationship with the mother of a child, that don’t want to get married are probably going to be lousy fathers.
There is kind of a catch-22 quality to this situation. Is it better to raise a child as a single mother or with a lousy dad?
But this can’t be true, can it? I thought that the top 3 reasons were rape, incest and endangerment to the mother. /s
At least that’s what the pro-aborts keep telling us.
Why are these stupid women then having sex and putting themselves in the position of getting pregnant by a man they believe is unwilling or unable to provide assistance in rearing children? I'm sorry, but the stupidity of this baffles me.
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