Events
Call for Papers:
IUSSP Seminar on: Decision-making regarding abortion—determinants and consequences
Organized by the Scientific Panel on Abortion Research of the IUSSP and the Population Council-Nairobi
Nanyuki, Kenya, 3-5 June, 2014
Deadline for submissions: 15 October 2013.
The objective of this seminar is to share empirical evidence and new research approaches, in order to stimulate and advance research on the decision-making process regarding abortion and its determinants and consequences. This seminar will focus on countries or contexts where access to abortion is restrictive due to legal conditions, high stigma, or poor quality of health system.
The decision making process regarding pregnancy resolution and abortion is insufficiently documented and poorly understood. In some societies women have no right and autonomy to decide about their own reproduction. The decision-making process related to pregnancy resolution and abortion may involve not only women but also other social actors such as partners, family or community, and these actors interact with health institutions—facilities and providers, formal and informal—and with legal and religious institutions. Economic constraints, lack of power, lack of financial autonomy, male domination, values and attitudes regarding abortion, weak provision for ensuring sexual and reproductive rights and poor quality of care are some of the key barriers that prevent women’s “free” decision about pregnancy resolution and abortion. In societies where access to abortion is totally prohibited or highly restricted, the decision to have an abortion is difficult due to the risks associated with this practice and its costs.
The seminar will provide an opportunity for researchers to present results from new studies based on both qualitative and quantitative data, propose new approaches and methodologies, and assess the advantages and disadvantages of existing methodologies, with the goal of advancing and guiding future work in this area. The seminar will include studies that reflect the decision making process of women in a range of contexts around the world—economic, social, cultural, political, and legal. Additional aims of the seminar are to increase networking between researchers and to facilitate linkages and coordination across disciplines, countries and research institutions.
The IUSSP Scientific Panel on Abortion invites researchers in the field to submit a short (200-word) abstract AND upload an extended abstract (2-4 pages, including tables) or a full paper, which must be unpublished and not submitted for publication, by 15 October 2013. The online submission form will be set up on the IUSSP website toward the end of September (after the IUSSP Conference in Busan).
Deadline for submissions: 15 October 2013.
Applicants will be informed whether paper is accepted by: 15 November 2013.
Participants must submit their complete paper by: 25 April 2014.
Abstracts and papers may be submitted in English, French or Spanish. However, the working language of the meeting is English, and presentations must be made in English.
For further information, please contact Susheela Singh (ssingh@guttmacher.org).