The role of social support in the experience of abortion: a qualitative study of women's personal accounts

Abstract

Even though the experience of abortion is a relatively common experience among women in Serbia, personal accounts in relation to abortion are rarely examined. International findings show that having social support is crucial in coping with this experience. The main objective of this research was to examine the ways in which women rely on social support and the ways in which this shapes their experiences. After six semi-structured interviews with women who terminated their first pregnancy, their personal accounts were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The role of significant others remains important during the whole experience but with qualitative shifts throughout the phases. In the earliest phases, other people could be perceived as a double threat - they could cause the feeling of shame or be an obstacle in the pregnancy termination. During and after the medical procedure, the need for social support becomes stronger and more complex, although in some cases it remains unmet. Most prominent social figures are mothers and romantic partners. Participants with responsive and supportive social surroundings coped more easily than others whose support is nonexistent or overly normalizing. Research contribution of this study is the analysis of personal accounts of women who had abortion. Practical contribution is raisin awareness of the importance of legitimization of complex and ambiguous feelings during abortion, both by significant others and health psychologists.