Crisis Pregnancy Agency Report 'Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy (ICCP) Study Sept 2004 Found Majority Support For Abortion

Crisis Pregnancy Agency Report No. 7
Kay Rundle, Collette Leigh, Hannah McGee and Richard Layte.

See http://crisispregnancy.ie/pub/Repseven.pdf
Table 3.25 Public Attitudes to circumstances in which a woman should have a choice to have
an abortion. Page 119.

The study was the first national representative survey of crisis pregnancy in Ireland: the Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy Study (ICCP). This groundbreaking study established, for the first time, current attitudes, knowledge and the experience of crisis pregnancy amongst women and men in Ireland. The survey examined the factors that lead up crisis pregnancy and the services women and men need to support them during and after a crisis pregnancy.

Research was conducted jointly by Professor Hannah McGee, Ms Kay Rundle, and Ms Collette Leigh from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and Dr Richard Layte from the Economic and Social Research Institute.

A sample size of 3000 members of the public was targeted, to include equal numbers of women and men. The sample included people aged 18-45 in order to focus on those for whom contraceptive practices, service perceptions and service usage were most relevant.

3.317 interviews were completed (1,356 men and 1,961 women). There was an overall response rate of 63.8%. The sample was re-weighted to match the structure of the Irish population. The results, therefore, can be considered representative of the general population. The study sample comprised 40.9%men and 59.1% women.

TABLE 3.25 Public Attitudes to circumstances in which a woman should have a choice to have an abortion (page 119).

Should a woman have a choice to have an abortion in this circumstance?
1986 Fine-Davis 1988 (n=600) 2003 ICCP Study 2004 ( n=3,312)



If the pregnancy seriously endangered the
woman's life
57 % (1986) 90% (2003)
If the pregnancy seriously endangered the
woman's health
48% (1986) 86% (2003)
If the pregnancy is a result of rape
51% (1986) 86% (2003)
If the pregnancy is the result of incest
52% (1986) 86% (2003)
If there is evidence that the child will be
deformed
31% (1986) 70% (2003)
If the couple is not married
8% (1986) 56% (2003)
If the couple cannot afford another child
7% (1986) 55% (2003)

(For the sake of the issue of foetal anomaly in the current case of Miss D, the circumstance that a woman should have the choice to have an abortion if there is evidence that the child will be deformed is highlighted in bold)