Citation

Russo NF, Denious JE. Prof. Psychol. Res. Pr. 2001; 32(2): 142-150.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2001, American Psychological Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

What do professional psychologists need to know to treat women who once had an abortion? Analyses of responses from 2,525 women revealed that women who reported an abortion were more likely than others to report symptoms of depression and lower life satisfaction. However, they were also more likely to experience rape, childhood physical and sexual abuse, and a violent partner. When history of abuse, partner characteristics, and background variables were controlled, abortion was not related to poorer mental health. This underscores the need to explore the effects of violence in women's lives to avoid misattributing psychological distress to abortion experiences.