New Study Shows Promise For Identifying, Reducing Reproductive Coercion

The latest research on reproductive coercion -- a type of intimate partner abuse in which the man threatens the woman to become pregnant -- shows that a simple intervention at a family planning clinic can empower women to protect themselves from future abuse, Time reports. Reproductive coercion, which usually coincides with other types of abuse within a relationship, is marked by physical or verbal threats against a woman for seeking birth control or an abortion. The male partner also might damage the woman's birth control pills or remove condoms during sex.

"It's another way a male partner tries to control a female partner," according to Elizabeth Miller, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California-Davis School of Medicine who has led much of the research in the field. She added, "Women say their partner tells them he wants to leave a legacy or have them in his life forever."

In one of Miller's studies, out of 1,300 family planning clinic patients ages 16 through 29, one-third who said they were in a violent relationship also said they experienced reproductive coercion. Another study found that as many as 75% of women ages 18 through 49 who had histories of abusive relationships reported experiencing reproductive coercion.

For Miller's most recent study, co-written by Jay Silverman of the Harvard School of Public Health, counselors and clinicians at two family planning clinics were trained to ask women questions about reproductive coercion, such as "Has your partner tried to force you to become pregnant when you didn't want to be?" and "Does your partner mess with your birth control?"

Women who responded "yes" to any question were given emergency contraception and offered advice on tamper-proof contraception methods, such as intrauterine devices and Depo-Provera shots. The researchers also monitored two other clinics where women were offered standard domestic violence and sexual assault screenings. The study found that subsequent reproductive coercion declined by 70% at the intervention clinics, but there was no change at the control clinics. In addition, women at the intervention clinics were 60% more likely to leave a relationship because they felt it was unsafe, Miller said. The study was published online in Contraception (Luscombe, Time, 8/31).