Family Planning Perspectives
Volume 33, Number 1, January/February 2001



TABLES: Contraceptive Failure in the First Two Years of Use: Differences Across Socioeconomic Subgroups


Table 1. Percentage of women experiencing an accidental pregancy during the first 12 months of contraceptive use, by selected characteristics,1988 and 1995 National Surveys of Family Growth
Characteristic 1988 1995
Total 13.1 12.5
Method used
IUD/injectable/implant na 2.9
Pill 7.5 8.3
Condom 14.4 14.5
Other 23.5 22.4
Age
<20 13.1 13.7
20-24 15.3 14.5
25-29 12.2 12.3
30-44 10.6 9.6
Union status
Married 10.6 9.3
Not in union 14.0 13.8
Cohabiting 24.3 22.3
Poverty status
<200% 10.3 9.9
>=200% 18.7 17.5
Race/ethnicity
Black 17.2 19.7*
Hispanic 15.6 15.4
White/other 12.1 10.8
*p<=.05. Notes: Rates are adjusted for abortion underreporting. na=not applicable, because rates for the IUD (the only long-acting method available in 1988) are not presented.

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Table 2. Number and percentage distribution of segments of contraceptive use, average length of use segments, and reported and corrected number of pregnancies, by selected characteristics of women, according to period of method use, combined 1988 and 1995 NSFG
Characteristic First year Second year
Use segments Pregnancies Use segments Pregnancies
N % Avg. length (mos.) Reported Corrected N % Avg. length (mos.) Reported Corrected
Total 13,032 100.0 6.7 665 1,074 4,916 100.0 8.0 258 335
Method used
IUD/injectable/implant 623 4.8 7.4 16 14 269 5.5 8.8 6 8
Pill 5,029 38.6 7.5 186 283 2,408 49.0 8.1 86 113
Diaphragm 643 4.9 6.9 40 56 273 5.6 8.5 22 28
Condom 4,721 36.2 6.0 230 409 1,376 28.0 7.8 87 110
Periodic abstinence 537 4.1 6.9 74 85 201 4.1 7.8 24 26
Withdrawal 713 5.5 5.5 64 104 197 4.0 8.0 18 25
Spermicide 766 5.9 5.6 55 119 192 3.9 7.7 15 28
Age
<18 1,737 13.3 5.9 91 131 468 9.5 7.5 26 32
18-19 1,634 12.5 6.1 88 143 571 11.6 7.9 26 35
20-24 3,644 28.0 6.6 207 386 1,439 29.3 8.0 82 111
25-29 2,993 23.0 6.9 154 251 1,203 24.5 8.0 66 92
30-44 3,024 23.2 7.2 125 163 1,235 25.1 8.4 58 65
Union status
Married 5,270 40.4 7.2 290 351 2,276 46.3 8.2 136 148
Not in union 6,658 51.1 6.4 309 581 2,198 44.7 8.1 95 146
Cohabiting 1,104 8.5 5.6 66 142 442 9.0 7.0 27 41
Poverty status
<100% 2,309 17.7 6.6 178 301 825 16.8 7.9 68 84
100-249% 3,812 29.3 6.5 216 373 1,356 27.6 7.9 86 118
>=250% 6,911 53.0 6.8 271 396 2,735 55.6 8.1 104 134
Race/ethnicity
Black 3,194 24.5 6.9 172 375 1,291 26.3 8.1 83 120
Hispanic 1,547 11.9 6.5 103 147 524 10.7 8.0 33 35
White/other 8,291 63.6 6.6 390 552 3,101 63.1 8.0 142 180
Note: Corrected number of pregnancies reflects adjustment for abortion underreporting.

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Table 3. Percentage of women experiencing an accidental pregnancy, by method, according to period of method use, combined 1988 and 1995 NSFG
Method First year Second year First two years
Total 12.5 8.0 19.4
Unstandardized
IUD/injectable/implant 3.5*** 3.0*** 7.5***
Pill 7.5*** 5.3*** 12.9***
Diaphragm 13.1 12.0 22.6
Condom (ref) 13.7 9.9 22.3
Periodic abstinence 22.9*** 14.5** 36.6***
Withdrawal 24.5*** 14.0*** 35.2***
Spermicide 27.6*** 17.0*** 39.7***
Standardized†
IUD/injectable/implant 3.2*** 2.5*** 6.6***
Pill 7.0*** 4.8*** 11.7***
Diaphragm 13.1 11.5 23.2
Condom (ref) 14.2 10.6 23.7
Periodic abstinence 23.5*** 13.4** 36.8***
Withdrawal 24.1*** 12.4* 36.4***
Spermicide 28.1*** 14.7*** 40.6***
*Rate is significantly different from rate for the condom at p<=.05. **Rate is significantly different from rate for the condom at p<=.01. ***Rate is significantly different from rate for the condom at p<=.001. †Standardized to the socioeconomic distribution of all method users. Notes: ref=reference group. Percentages are corrected for abortion underreporting. Variables included in the model are method, duration of use (except in the model for the second year), age, union status, poverty level, and race or ethnicity.

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Table 4. Percentage of women experiencing an accidental pregnancy, by selected characteristics, according to period of method use, combined 1988 and 1995 NSFG
Characteristic First year Second year First two years
Total 12.5 8.0 19.4
Age
<18 12.4 8.6 21.1
18-19 (ref) 14.0 7.1 20.2
20-24 15.2 8.4 22.2
25-29 11.6* 9.9** 19.8
30-44 9.5*** 6.1 14.2***
Union status
Married 10.0*** 7.9 17.1**
Not in union (ref) 13.6 7.7 20.3
Cohabiting 21.2*** 10.9*** 28.4***
Poverty status
<100% 20.5*** 11.3 30.0***
100-249% (ref) 15.5 10.8 24.6
>=250% 9.1*** 6.2*** 14.6***
Race/ethnicity
Black 18.1** 11.7*** 27.0***
Hispanic (ref) 15.5 8.9 22.1
White/other 11.2*** 7.3** 17.8***
*Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.05. **Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.01. ***Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.001. Notes: ref=reference group. Percentages are corrected for abortion underreporting. Variables included in the model are method, duration of use (except in the model for the second year), age, union status, poverty level, and race or ethnicity.

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Table 5. Percentage of women experiencing an accidental pregnancy, by union status, poverty status and period of use, according to race or ethnicity, combined 1988 and 1995 NSFG
Characteristic and period Black Hispanic (ref) White/other
UNION STATUS
First year
Married 13.7* 12.0 9.4**
Not in union 18.5 17.0 12.0***
Cohabiting 25.9 25.6 19.3***
First two years
Married 23.1* 20.7 15.3***
Not in union 27.5 26.6 18.7***
Cohabiting 37.6*** 20.0 28.7***
POVERTY STATUS
First year
<100% 18.7*** 25.6 19.6***
100-249% 20.7** 16.1 14.5
>=250% 15.3*** 8.5 8.5
First two years
<100% 29.4* 33.8 29.4**
100-249% 29.8** 25.6 23.0*
>=250% 23.2*** 14.1 14.0
*Rate is significantly different from rate for Hispanic women at p<=.05. **Rate is significantly different from rate for Hispanic women at p<=.01.
***Rate is significantly different from rate for Hispanic women at p<=.001. Notes: ref=reference group. Percentages are corrected for abortion underreporting. Variables included in the model are method, duration of use (except in the model for the second year), age, union status, poverty level, and race or ethnicity.

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Table 6. Percentage of women experiencing an accidental pregnancy, by duration of method use and characteristic, according to method, combined 1988 and 1995 NSFG
Duration and characteristic IUD/injectable/
implant		 Pill Diaphragm Condom Periodic abstinence Withdrawal Spermicides
FIRST TWO YEARS
Age
<18 8.2 13.8 u 25.8 46.1 40.7 53.0
18-19 (ref) 8.5 14.0 21.8 27.5 44.0 43.1 49.8
20-24 10.9* 14.9 36.0*** 28.2 53.6* 42.7 54.1
25-29 7.5 11.9 26.7 21.8* 39.6 32.4** 41.8
30-44 4.5** 6.9*** 16.1 13.6*** 26.0** 23.8*** 28.9***
Union status
Married 6.4 10.8 20.0* 17.2*** 33.4** 30.7** 34.4**
Not in union (ref) 8.0 13.3 25.4 25.5 42.7 39.1 44.3
Cohabiting 13.7*** 20.5*** 36.3** 34.2*** 52.3** 48.1** 58.7***
Poverty status
<100% 10.7 22.2*** 44.2** 38.8*** 60.5** 52.1*** 57.5*
100-249% (ref) 8.8 16.3 33.1 29.3 48.6 40.7 50.0
>=250% 4.7** 8.8*** 18.6*** 15.9*** 28.5*** 27.7*** 33.4***
Race/ethnicity
Black 7.1 20.4 37.1*** 37.3*** 28.5** 47.7*** 47.5***
Hispanic (ref) 6.4 18.7 17.4 28.7 36.3 27.8 28.3
White/other 7.9 10.7*** 22.1* 19.4*** 37.4 35.5** 39.3***
FIRST YEAR
Age
<18 3.5 7.4 u 14.5 u 24.8* 30.4
18-19 (ref†) 4.3 8.6 u 17.7 u 31.3 36.8
20-24 5.1 9.0 21.2** 17.8 33.8*** 29.6 37.2
25-29 3.1 6.4 12.7 11.8** 21.9 20.7** 26.7**
30-44 2.2** 4.5** 9.6 8.9*** 16.6 17.5*** 19.7***
Union status
Married 2.7* 5.7** 10.4** 9.6*** 19.6*** 19.5*** 21.2***
Not in union (ref) 3.8 8.1 17.2 15.8 28.5 27.0 32.9
Cohabiting 6.5** 13.5*** 23.3** 23.8*** 38.0** 38.8*** 41.6**
Poverty status
<100% 5.3 13.6*** 28.9*** 25.3*** 43.4*** 38.8*** 43.7**
100-249% (ref) 4.0 9.0 18.7 17.3 28.8 28.9 34.7
>=250% 2.2** 4.9*** 10.2*** 9.4*** 17.0*** 18.3*** 22.0***
Race/ethnicity
Black 3.8 11.5 27.9*** 24.1** 22.6 33.8*** 36.5***
Hispanic (ref) 3.4 12.8 12.3 18.8 25.4 19.5 21.4
White/other 3.5 6.0*** 12.2 11.6*** 22.6 24.5** 26.8**
SECOND YEAR
Age
<18 3.8 5.5 u 11.2 u 14.3 u
18-19 (ref†) 3.8 4.9 u 10.1 u 15.3 20.5
20-24 4.2 5.8 16.8 11.9 23.7 16.9 21.5
25-29 3.7 5.9 16.9 12.5 18.4 15.8 22.4
30-44 1.7* 2.8* 8.1** 6.2* 10.0** 9.3** 12.1**
Union status
Married 2.6 4.9 11.2 8.8 13.1* 13.4 16.4
Not in union (ref) 3.3 5.1 12.4 10.6 17.3 13.3 17.1
Cohabiting 5.7** 7.8** 17.1* 13.8* 27.5*** 23.9*** 25.0**
Poverty status
<100% 4.3 8.3 20.2 15.3 25.7 20.3 29.4*
100-249% (ref) 3.7 7.1 19.5 13.8 21.0 17.6 23.0
>=250% 1.8* 3.7** 10.1*** 7.4*** 11.1*** 10.6*** 13.8***
Race/ethnicity
Black 4.8 8.4* 16.8 16.2** 24.2*** 21.0 24.8*
Hispanic (ref) 3.6 6.3 15.9 11.4 14.1 17.9 20.2
White/other 2.2 4.6* 11.6* 8.8* 13.5 12.8** 15.2*
*Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.05. **Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.01. ***Rate is significantly different from rate for the reference group at p<=.001. †Where data for 18-19-year-olds are unavailable, the reference category is 25-29. Notes: ref=reference group. u=unavailable. Variables included in the model are method, duration of use (except in the model for the second year), age, union status, poverty level, and race or ethnicity.

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© copyright 2001, The Alan Guttmacher Institute.