A Prospective Cohort Study of the Effect of Receiving versus Being Denied an Abortion on Educational Attainment

Research on the effects of unintended childbearing has been limited in its ability to disentangle the direct effects of childbearing from common selection factors that predispose women to both unintended childbearing and lower educational attainment.

Using data from a 5-year prospective cohort study of 876 individuals seeking abortion care, some of whom were denied care because they presented beyond a facility's gestational age limit, we used discrete time survival models to estimate the hazard of graduating and dropping out among those enrolled in high school, college, or other type of school (n = 280). We also examined cluster-adjusted bivariable differences in degrees completed by receipt versus denial of a wanted abortion.

Participants denied an abortion who parented were equally likely to be in school as compared with women who received a wanted abortion (33 vs. 28%; p = .19); however, they were more likely to be seeking a high school diploma (40 vs. 24%; p = .05) than a higher degree. In adjusted models, there were no differences in the hazard of graduating (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.76; 95% confidence interval, 0.36-1.61) or dropping out (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.12; 95% confidence interval, 0.67-1.88) between those who were denied versus received an abortion. Among graduates, participants denied a wanted abortion less often completed a postsecondary degree (27%) compared with those who received a wanted abortion (71%; p = .002).

Unintended childbirth was not associated with graduating or dropping out in this population, a finding that is at least partially explained by differences in degrees sought at the time of abortion seeking.