Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022

Elizabeth Pleasants; Karen Weidert; Lindsay Parham; Emma Anderson; Eliza Dolgins; Coye Cheshire; Cassondra Marshall; Ndola Prata; Ushma Upadhyay

doi:10.1080/26410397.2024.2426921

Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters (Nov 2024)

Abortion access barriers shared in “r/abortion” after Roe: a qualitative analysis of Reddit community post-Dobbs decision leak in 2022

Elizabeth Pleasants,
Karen Weidert,
Lindsay Parham,
Emma Anderson,
Eliza Dolgins,
Coye Cheshire,
Cassondra Marshall,
Ndola Prata,
Ushma Upadhyay

Affiliations

Elizabeth Pleasants: Graduate Student Researcher, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Karen Weidert: Executive Director, Bixby Center for Population, Health, and Sustainability at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Lindsay Parham: Executive Director, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Emma Anderson: Graduate student researcher, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Eliza Dolgins: Research associate, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Coye Cheshire: Professor, School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Cassondra Marshall: Assistant Professor, Wallace Center for Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Research at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Ndola Prata: Director and Professor in Residence, Bixby Center for Population, Health, and Sustainability at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California, USA;
Ushma Upadhyay: Professor, University of California, San Francisco, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Science, Oakland, California, USA;

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/26410397.2024.2426921

Abstract

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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 US. 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.

Published in Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters

ISSN: 2641-0397 (Online)
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Specialties of internal medicine: Diseases of the genitourinary system. Urology; Social Sciences: The family. Marriage. Woman
Website: https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/zrhm

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Abstract

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