Abortion statistics: summary of sources and useful links
by Wm. Robert Johnston
last updated 14 March 2004
Summary of sources (see other pages for complete lists)
Available compilations of abortion statistics mostly fall in two categories: official statistics from government agencies and research by organizations supportive of abortion.
Important sources for U.S. statistics include:
- The Centers for Disease Control, particularly the (usually) annual "Abortion Surveillance" reports appearing in MMWR (www.cdc.gov).
- The periodic "Abortion Services in the United States" reports by Stanley Henshaw et ali in Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health (fomerly Family Planning Perspectives), a journal of the Alan Guttmacher Institute (some articles on line).
- Some states publish state level statistics, with varying degrees of completeness. Some material is available on line (see State agency sources of abortion statistics for more information).
Important sources for international statistics include:
- United Nations demographic reports, including the annual Demographic Yearbook from the Statistics Division and policy reviews by the United Nations Population Division.
- Various reports in the Alan Guttmacher Institute journal International Family Planning Perspectives (some articles on line).
- The Council of Europe's annual Demographic Yearbook (www.coe.int/t/e/social%5Fcohesion/population/).
- Research by Christopher Tietze, including various editions of Induced Abortion: A World Review.
Useful links:
© 2000-2003, 2004 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 14 March 2004.
Return to Home. Return to Other Policy Issues. Return to Abortion Statistics.