Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022
With drastic changes to abortion policy, the months following the Dobbs leak and subsequent decision in 2022 were a uniquely uncertain and difficult time for abortion access in the United States. To understand experiences of challenges to abortion access during that time, we used a hybrid inductive...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis Group
2024-12-01
|
| Series: | Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/26410397.2024.2426921 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1846139287100194816 |
|---|---|
| author | Elizabeth Pleasants Karen Weidert Lindsay Parham Emma Anderson Eliza Dolgins Coye Cheshire Cassondra Marshall Ndola Prata Ushma Upadhyay |
| author_facet | Elizabeth Pleasants Karen Weidert Lindsay Parham Emma Anderson Eliza Dolgins Coye Cheshire Cassondra Marshall Ndola Prata Ushma Upadhyay |
| author_sort | Elizabeth Pleasants |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | With drastic changes to abortion policy, the months following the Dobbs leak and subsequent decision in 2022 were a uniquely uncertain and difficult time for abortion access in the United States. To understand experiences of challenges to abortion access during that time, we used a hybrid inductive and deductive thematic coding approach to analyse descriptions of barriers and their impacts shared in an abortion subreddit (r/abortion). A simple random sample of 10% of posts was obtained from those shared from 02 May 2022 through 23 December 2022; comments were purposively sampled during the coding process. In this sample of submissions (n = 523 posts, 88 comments), people described structural barriers identified in past research, including state abortion bans and gestational limits, high costs, limited appointment availability, and long travel required. Posters also commonly described known social barriers, including limited social support and abortion stigma. Several impactful barriers not well-described in past research emerged inductively, including wait time for receiving mail-ordered abortion medication, low credibility of online ordering platforms, and concerns about legal risks of accessing abortion or related medical care. The most common consequences of experiencing barriers were adverse mental health outcomes, delayed access to care, and being compelled to self-manage their abortion because of access barriers. This analysis provides timely insights into the experiences and impacts of abortion access barriers in a group of people with a range of engagement with clinical abortion care, lived experiences, and points in their abortion processes, with public health implications for mental health and abortion access. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c2ec983a30004a99aa3e8d7b977d4568 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2641-0397 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters |
| spelling | doaj-art-c2ec983a30004a99aa3e8d7b977d45682024-12-06T11:32:24ZengTaylor & Francis GroupSexual and Reproductive Health Matters2641-03972024-12-0132110.1080/26410397.2024.2426921Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022Elizabeth Pleasants0Karen Weidert1Lindsay Parham2Emma Anderson3Eliza Dolgins4Coye Cheshire5Cassondra Marshall6Ndola Prata7Ushma Upadhyay8Graduate Student Researcher, School of Public Health, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way West, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA.Executive Director, Bixby Center for Population, Health, and Sustainability at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, CA, USAExecutive Director, School of Public Health, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USAGraduate Student Researcher, School of Public Health, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USAResearch Associate, School of Public Health, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USAProfessor, School of Public Health, School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USAAssistant Professor, School of Public Health, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USADirector and Professor in Residence, School of Public Health, Bixby Center for Population, Health, and Sustainability at the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USAProfessor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Science, University of California, San Francisco, Oakland, CA, USAWith drastic changes to abortion policy, the months following the Dobbs leak and subsequent decision in 2022 were a uniquely uncertain and difficult time for abortion access in the United States. To understand experiences of challenges to abortion access during that time, we used a hybrid inductive and deductive thematic coding approach to analyse descriptions of barriers and their impacts shared in an abortion subreddit (r/abortion). A simple random sample of 10% of posts was obtained from those shared from 02 May 2022 through 23 December 2022; comments were purposively sampled during the coding process. In this sample of submissions (n = 523 posts, 88 comments), people described structural barriers identified in past research, including state abortion bans and gestational limits, high costs, limited appointment availability, and long travel required. Posters also commonly described known social barriers, including limited social support and abortion stigma. Several impactful barriers not well-described in past research emerged inductively, including wait time for receiving mail-ordered abortion medication, low credibility of online ordering platforms, and concerns about legal risks of accessing abortion or related medical care. The most common consequences of experiencing barriers were adverse mental health outcomes, delayed access to care, and being compelled to self-manage their abortion because of access barriers. This analysis provides timely insights into the experiences and impacts of abortion access barriers in a group of people with a range of engagement with clinical abortion care, lived experiences, and points in their abortion processes, with public health implications for mental health and abortion access.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/26410397.2024.2426921abortion accessUnited Statesbarriersqualitative researchRedditonline community |
| spellingShingle | Elizabeth Pleasants Karen Weidert Lindsay Parham Emma Anderson Eliza Dolgins Coye Cheshire Cassondra Marshall Ndola Prata Ushma Upadhyay Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters abortion access United States barriers qualitative research online community |
| title | Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| title_full | Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| title_fullStr | Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| title_short | Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of a Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| title_sort | abortion access barriers shared in r abortion after roe a qualitative analysis of a reddit community post dobbs decision leak in 2022 |
| topic | abortion access United States barriers qualitative research online community |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/26410397.2024.2426921 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT elizabethpleasants abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT karenweidert abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT lindsayparham abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT emmaanderson abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT elizadolgins abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT coyecheshire abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT cassondramarshall abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT ndolaprata abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 AT ushmaupadhyay abortionaccessbarrierssharedinrabortionafterroeaqualitativeanalysisofaredditcommunitypostdobbsdecisionleakin2022 |