Datapoint: Why Do Women Seek Contraceptive Services?
September 28, 2012 — In a survey by the Guttmacher Institute, nearly two-thirds of women listed "I can't afford to take care of a baby right now" as a very important reason why they used birth control.
The findings -- detailed in a new study by Guttmacher's Jennifer Frost and Laura Duberstein Lindberg -- confirm that women use birth control for economic stability, to better care for themselves and their families, and to enable them to reach their goals.
Women in the survey were asked to indicate which of 17 possible reasons for using birth control were "very important," "somewhat important," "not so important" or "not applicable" to them. On average, women said seven reasons were very important. This graphic details some of their most common responses.
The information contained in this publication reflects media coverage of women’s health issues and does not necessarily reflect the views of the National Partnership for Women & Families.
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The Editors
Debra Ness, publisher & president, National Partnership
Andrea Friedman, associate editor & director of reproductive health programs, National Partnership
Marya Torrez, associate editor & senior reproductive health policy counsel, National Partnership
Melissa Safford, associate editor & policy advocate for reproductive health, National Partnership
Perry Sacks, assistant editor & health program associate, National Partnership
Cindy Romero, assistant editor & communications assistant, National Partnership
Justyn Ware, editor
Amanda Wolfe, editor-in-chief
Heather Drost, Hanna Jaquith, Marcelle Maginnis, Ashley Marchand and Michelle Stuckey, staff writers
Tucker Ball, director of new media, National Partnership
