Development and Validation of a Reproductive Autonomy Scale
Ushma D. Upadhyay,
Shari L. Dworkin,
Tracy A. Weitz,
Diana Greene Foster,
Ushma D. Upadhyay
Assistant Professor, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorShari L. Dworkin
Associate Professor, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco.
Search for more papers by this authorTracy A. Weitz
Was (at the time of the study) Associate Professor and Director, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorDiana Greene Foster
Associate Professor, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorUshma D. Upadhyay,
Shari L. Dworkin,
Tracy A. Weitz,
Diana Greene Foster,
Ushma D. Upadhyay
Assistant Professor, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorShari L. Dworkin
Associate Professor, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco.
Search for more papers by this authorTracy A. Weitz
Was (at the time of the study) Associate Professor and Director, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorDiana Greene Foster
Associate Professor, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, 1330 Broadway, Suite 1100 Oakland, CA 94612
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
No validated measures are currently available to assess women's ability to achieve their reproductive intentions, also referred to as “reproductive autonomy.” We developed and validated a multidimensional instrument that can measure reproductive autonomy. We generated a pool of 26 items and included them in a survey that was conducted among 1,892 women at 13 family planning and 6 abortion facilities in the United States. Fourteen items were selected through factor analysis and grouped into 3 subscales to form a Reproductive Autonomy Scale: freedom from coercion; communication; and decision-making. Construct validity was demonstrated by a mixed-effects model in which the freedom from coercion subscale and the communication subscale were inversely associated with unprotected sex in the past three months. This new Reproductive Autonomy Scale offers researchers a reliable instrument with which to assess a woman's power to control matters regarding contraceptive use, pregnancy, and childbearing, and to evaluate interventions to increase women's autonomy domestically and globally.
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