Reasons for discontinuing and not intending to use contraception in India

Publication Date: January 1999

Publisher: International Institute for Population Sciences; East-West Center

Author(s): Vinod K. Mishra; Robert D. Retherford; P. Sadasivan Nair; Griffith Feeney

Research Area: Population and demographics

Type: Report

Coverage: India

Abstract:

Among currently married women age 13-49 who discontinued using contraception, 38 percent did so because of a method-related problem or method failure. The proportion who discontinued for these reasons varies widely by state but not by socioeconomic group. Fifteen percent of women who do not use contraception and who do not intend to use contraception in the future report method-related problems as their main reason for not intending to use contraception, while 9 percent mention opposition to family planning. The proportion reporting method-related problems or opposition to family planning is particularly high among women in the prime reproductive ages and women not regularly exposed to electronic mass media. The proportion reporting opposition to family planning is particularly high among Muslim women. The NFHS Subject Reports is a series summarizing secondary analysis of data from the 1992-93 National Family Health Survey (NFHS) in India. The NFHS collected information from nearly 90,000 Indian women on a range of demographic and health topics. Conducted under the auspices of the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the survey provides national and state-level estimates of fertility, infant and child mortality, family planning practice, maternal and child health, and the utilization of services available to mothers and children. IIPS conducted the survey in cooperation with consulting organizations and 18 population research centers throughout India. The East-West Center and a U.S.-based consulting firm, Macro International, provided technical assistance, and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provided financial support. Printed copies are available from the East-West Center Research Program, Population and Health Studies. Single copies are available free by airmail and may be reproduced for educational use.