Pregnancy termination among South African adolescents

Although African adolescents' risk of undergoing abortion and of related health complications is well-documented, little is known about the procedure's prominence in their lives and the pathways that lead to their reliance upon it. This study investigates abortion dynamics among male and female Zulu adolescents in KwaZulu/Natal, South Africa. It explores the role of abortion in young people's sexual and reproductive experience, its acceptability, the reasons and likelihood of young people's choosing abortion, and the commonly used methods of pregnancy termination. The study, a rural-urban comparison using focus-group discussions, narrative workshops, and role playing, involved surveys and in-depth interviews. Factors contributing to the commonplace nature of backstreet procedures among adolescents include: social stigma, inadequate knowledge of the legal status of abortion, and a complex group decisionmaking process. Young people invoke "relative moralities" concerning adolescent abortion, recognizing and condoning it on a context-specific basis. Age, gender, and geographic differences are examined. The methodological triangulation used offers the opportunity for alternative theoretical and methodological approaches to research on abortion-related issues.