Lawrence Finer, Director of Domestic Research

Lawrence Finer joined the Guttmacher Institute in 1998. As Director of Domestic Research, he is responsible for supervising Guttmacher’s research portfolio of U.S.-focused projects on family planning services, contraceptive use patterns, pregnancy and abortion, and adolescent reproductive health. His current work focuses on estimating unintended pregnancy at the national and state level. Dr. Finer has also overseen Guttmacher’s periodic census of abortion providers, which measures the incidence and availability of abortion nationwide. He has authored work on premarital sex, women’s reasons for seeking abortion, multiple sexual partnerships and risk for sexually transmitted diseases, the services provided by U.S. family planning agencies and clinics, men’s reproductive health, and the timing of first family planning visits.

Dr. Finer serves as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Population and Family Health at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of Family Planning and the Board of Associate Editors of the journal Contraception. He is a recent recipient of the Outstanding Young Professional Award from the Population, Family Planning and Reproductive Health Section of the American Public Health Association. Dr. Finer came to Guttmacher after serving as a Social Science Analyst in the Demographic and Behavioral Sciences Branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. He received his A.B. in psychology from Harvard and his Ph.D. in population dynamics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.

Recent Publications Include:

Jones RK, Finer LB, Who has second-trimester abortions in the United States?, Contraception, 2011, <http://www.contraceptionjournal.org/article/PIIS0010782411006251/abstract>.

Finer LB and Zolna MR, Unintended pregnancy in the United States: incidence and disparities, 2006, Contraception, 2011, 84(5):478-485.

Kavanaugh ML et al., Characteristics of women in the United States who use long-acting reversible contraceptive methods, Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2011, 117(6):1349-1357.

Finer LB, Kost K, Unintended pregnancy rates at the state level, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2011, 43(2):78-87.

Sonfield A, Kost K, Gold RB and Finer LB, The public costs of births resulting from unintended pregnancies: national and state-level estimates, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2011, 43(2):94-102.

Kavanaugh ML, Jones RK, Finer LB, Perceived and Insurance-Related Barriers to the Provision of Contraceptive Services in U.S. Abortion Care Settings, Women's Health Issues, 2011, 21(3):S26-S31.

Kapadia F, Finer LB, Klukas E, Associations Between Perceived Partner Support and Relationship Dynamics With Timing of Pregnancy Termination, Women's Health Issues, 2011, 21(3):S8-S13.

Kittur ND et al., Comparison of contraceptive use between the Contraceptive CHOICE Project and state and national data, Contraception, 2011, 83(5):479-485.

Landry DJ et al., Review of the Role of Faith- and Community-Based Organizations in Providing Comprehensive Sexuality Education, American Journal of Sexuality Education, 2011, 6(1):75-103.

Hubacher D, Finer LB, Espey E, Renewed Interest in Intrauterine Contraception in the United States: Evidence and Explanation, Contraception, 2011, 83(4):291-294.

Steinberg JR, Finer LB, Examining the association of abortion history and current mental health: A reanalysis of the National Comorbidity Survey using a common-risk-factors model, Social Science and Medicine, 72(1):72-82.

Kavanaugh ML, Jones RK and Finer LB, How commonly do U.S. abortion clinics offer contraceptive services?, Contraception, 2010, 82(4):331-336.

Jones RK, Finer LB and Singh S, Characteristics of U.S. Abortion Patients, 2008, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2010.

Finer LB, Unintended pregnancy among U.S. adolescents: Accounting for sexual activity, Journal of Adolescent Health, 2010, 47(3):312-314.

Finer LB and Wei, J, Effect of Mifepristone on abortion access in the United States,Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2009, 114(3):623-630.

Henshaw SK, Joyce TJ, Dennis A, Finer LB and Blanchard K, Restrictions on Medicaid Funding for Abortions: A Literature Review, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2009.

Joyce TJ, Henshaw SK, Dennis A, Finer LB and Blanchard K, The Impact of State Mandatory Counseling and Waiting Period Laws on Abortion: A Literature Review, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2009.

Dennis A, Henshaw SK, Joyce TJ, Finer LB and Blanchard K, The Impact of Laws Requiring Parental Involvement for Abortion: A Literature Review, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2009.

Frost JJ, Finer LB and Tapales A, The impact of publicly funded family planning clinic services on unintended pregnancies and government cost savings, Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 2008, 19(3):777-795.

Jones RK, Zolna MRS, Henshaw SK and Finer LB, Abortion in the United States: Incidence and access to services, 2005, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2008, 40(1):6-16.

Frost JJ, Singh S and Finer LB, Factors associated with contraceptive use and nonuse, United States, 2004, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2007, 39(2):90-99.

Frost JJ, Singh S and Finer LB, U.S. Women's one-year contraceptive use patterns, 2004, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2007, 39(1):48-55.

Finer LB, Trends in premarital sex in the United States, 1954-2003, Public Health Reports, 2007, 122(1):73-78.

Jones RK, Singh S and Finer LB, Repeat abortion in the United States, Occasional Report, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2006, No. 29.

Finer LB et al., Timing of steps and reasons for delays in obtaining abortions in the United States, Contraception, 2006, 74(4):334-344.

Finer LB et al., Disparities in unintended pregnancy in the United States, 1994 and 2001, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2006, 38(2):90–96.

Boonstra H, Gold RB, Richards C and Finer LB, Abortion in Women’s Lives, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2006.

Finer LB, Frohwirth LF, Dauphinee LA, Singh S and Moore AM, "Reasons U.S. women have abortions: quantitative and qualitative perspectives," Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2005, 37(3):110-118.

Jones RK, Purcell A, Singh S and Finer LB, Adolescents’ reports of parental knowledge of adolescents’ use of sexual health services and their reactions to mandated parental notification for prescription contraception, Journal of the American Medical Association, 2005, 293(3):340–348.

Finer LB, Darroch JE and Frost JJ, Services for men at publicly funded family planning agencies, 1998–1999, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2003, 35(5):202–207.

Finer LB and Henshaw SK, Abortion incidence and services in the United States in 2000, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2003, 35(1):6–15.

Henshaw SK and Finer LB, The accessibility of abortion services in the United States, 2001, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2003, 35(1):16–24.

Finer LB, Darroch JE and Frost JJ, U.S. agencies providing publicly funded family planning services in 1999, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2002, 34(1):15–24.

Finer LB, Darroch JE and Singh S, Sexual partnership patterns as a behavioral risk factor for sexually transmitted diseases, Family Planning Perspectives, 1999, 31(5):228–236.

Finer LB and Zabin LS, Does the first family planning visit still matter?,Family Planning Perspectives, 1998, 30(1):30–33 and 42.