DOCUMENT RESUME CG 009 622 ED 103 752 Sardis, Panos D. AUTHOR Abortion Attitudes Among University Students in TITLE India. [75] PUB DATE NOTE 30p. HC- $1.95 PLUS POSTAGE MF-$0.76 EDRS PRICE *Abortions; *Attitudes; College Students; *Cross DESCRIPTORS Cultural Studies; Educational Background; Foreign Countries; Higher Education; *Religious Factors; Research Projects; *Values *India IDENTIFIERS ABSTRACT This report hypothesized that Indian university students approve of abortion, that religiosity neutulizes the influence of education in abortion attitudes, and that Indian students are more liberal in their attitudes on abortion than American Catholic students. To test these hypotheses, the author collected data from 150 students from two Calcutta colleges. Survey (1) the Indian students approved of results reflect the following: (2) religion, socioeconomic background, and education were abortion; factors affecting attitudes on abortion; and (3) religiosity remains Catholics being more conservative than an influential force, American the Hindus and American Protestants, with Hindus almost as liberal as which make Protestants. The report concludes that additional surveys comparisons among less educated Itdians and test for possible selectivity in the student groups even before college are needed in order to throw further light on this subject. (Author/RVJ) 4, 1 U S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION & WELFARE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ABORTION ATTITIJDES AMONG UNIVERSITY EDUCATION REPRO THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN FROM DUCE() EXACTLY AS RECEIVED ORIGIN THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION STUDENTS IN MIA OPINIONS ATING IT POINTS OF VIEW OR RF.PRE STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY OF SENT OFFICIAL NATIONAL. INSTITUTE EDUCATION POSITION OR POLICY Panos D. Bardis pr\ C.) r-4 Toledo University, Toledo, Ohio, USA CZt "For destroying the embryo...he LIJ must perform the same penance." ;Jaws of Manu, XI, 88. Introduction I. On April 1, 1971, India's population was population of our entire planet. 547,949,809, or 15.3 percent of the at a rate for the "The increase from 1951 to 1961 was 108.8 million, added to their In that decade the people of India decade of 24.7%. of Japan (the seventh most number the equivalent of the population On world) with some four million to spare." populous nation in the lives are added to India's numbers the average, "more than one million considerable increases in agricultural every month, and so.the very Independence have not benefited the and industrial production since proportion" (Mandelbaum, 1974:2; Lader, average Indian in similar 1970:138). number of live births per 1,000 persons, Between 1965 and 1'970, the USA in 42.8 (the corresponding figure for the or crude birth rate, was 136.7 per 1,000 In 1958-1959, the fertility rate was 1972 was 15.6). fl f.".3 On the other hand, the 59.3). people (the 1971 value for the USA was ''f'm only 16.7 per 1,000 persons, crude death rate for 1965-1970 was for the USA being 9.3 (United excluding stillbirths, the 1971 rate 1974:81-85). 1973:806; United Nations, States Bureau of the Census, is partly explained by the use The rapid decline in India's death rate 1 2 of DDT and the resulting virtual disappearance of malaria--an Indian leader has observed that nowadays, if you wish to meet a mosquito, you must go to a zoo! For India, an average diet of 2,250 calories per day has been considered minimally adequate (the U.S. average is 3,110). In 1968-1969, however, 50 percent of the urban population and 40 percent of those living in villages had fewer calories per day (Mandelbaum, 1974:3). Familyylanning. In view of these problems, India has B. attempted to adopt family planning. Unfortunately, its "avowed commitment to birth control has been so timid and perfunctory that the government can be accused of almost toying with the crisis until the country was bu.ied by it" (Lader, 1970:136). Of course, the influential Hindu classics have emphasized celibacy, which supposedly leads to spiritual and physical strength. Such religious ideals, which the Muslims have rejected, and which even the Hindus are beginning to question, were popularized and supported by both Gandhi and Nehru. Indeed, Mahatma Gandhi "believed that birth control would weaken the moral fibre of his people, and expected them to follow his own unique idealism, limiting their families by self-restraint. Later, Nehru's contraception campaigns not only lacked force and adequate financial support; they were run by a spinster Health Minister, who was decidedly unenthusiastic about the subject" (Lader, 1970:137). In fact, in 1951, when India's activists demanded a strong family planning program, Prime Minister Nehru replied that economic underdevelopment, not overpopulation, was his country's problem (Norman, 1965:406-407). It is no wonder, then, that early after Independence the only genuine birth control measures, such as urban clinics and motorize: clinics for 3 the provinces, were introduced by private organizations (Lader, 1970:137). In any event, family planning, whose symbol is a red triangle with the apex down, was introduced by the First Five-Year Plan of 1951-1956 The authorized annual national budget for 1967 (Mandelbaum, 1974:6). For was $60,000,000, or $.1.2 per capita (Berelson, 1969:358). A U.N. 1968-1969, it was 370,000,000 rupees, or about $50,000,000. study further revealed that, in 1969, family planning encompassed 70,000 employees, including 6,100 physicians and 35,500 paramedical In brief, this program workers (Mandelbaum, 1974:6; Simmons, 1971). "has been officially promoted, especially research and experimental Naturally enough there is, work, ever since the First Five Year Plan. on the whole, readier acceptance of the ideas of family planning in the cities where even the poorer groups rapidly become more sophisticated in some respects....The main difficulty in towns is the cost of any form of mechanical or chemical contraceptives, especially in the poorer The same groups also suffer from groups rLere the need is greatest. ignorance, illiteracy and notably 'innumeracy' when attempting to apply the rhythm, method--a fickle method at best" (Spate and Learmonth, Still, the general economic success of the Five-Year 1967:146-147). Plans themselves might gradually generate lower birth rates. The more philosophical aspects of family planning are expressed by the three principles that extended this program in October 1963: "(1) each individual should know and feel that the immediate society or community to which he belongs has agreed as a group that having a small family size is the normal, desirable behavior for its members; (2) each individual should have knowledge that a small family is valuable to him personally and should have knowledge of contraceptive methods; 4 and (3) each individual should have contraceptive methods readily accessible" (Raina, 1966:115-116). Implementation involving personnel includes, among other things. In the late 1960's, there were schools for auxiliary nurse midwives. over 200 such schools in India, which trained 10,000 nurses of this However, 55,000 nurse midwives are needed (Bhatia, 1969:78). type. As for the birth control techniques employed, these range from the conservatives' brahmacharal (monklike abstinence) to the Y.M.C.A. method (cold baths) and the pill. method has been common is the One of the reasons why the rhythm fact that, when India requested the assistance of the World Health responded Organization, the influential Roman Catholic member-nations This inadequate approach was with a great emphasis on this technique. namely, rendered less effective by a peculiar practical implementation, Unfortunately, these women were a necklace of 28 beads worn by women. night and unable to distinguish the red color of the danger beads at Even when the experts often moved them in the wrong direction. introduced safety catches and different shapes, the women forgot to than one a day! move the beads or, when sexually excited, moved more Besides, in order to preclude criticism by their neighbors, many women In 1965:110,117). hesitated to wear these necklaces (Chandrasekhar, often the villages, ignorance, illiteracy, conservatism, and poverty For instance, "beads led to magic beliefs concerning this method. period representing the menstrual cycle differentiating the most likely goat, in a for conception...were in fact placed around the neck of a village near the experimental clinic in Ramanagaram in Mysore, in order (Spate and Learmonth, 1967:147). to induce a caprine pregnancy!" Similarly, in the late 1960's when government demonstrator._ 5 stretched condoms over bamboo sticks, many peasants lost faith in such "magic" when their wives conceived, although they, too, stretched prophylactics on bamboo sticks while having coitus! Still, the press advertised nirodh (protection) condoms and the government subsidized them--tho %nice has been two cents for three pieces. Thus, in 1968-1969, almost 51,(00,000 prophylactics were distributed (Mandelbaum, 1974:6,82). The number of IUD insertions for 1970-1971 was 470,000, or The Lippes loop, which the 4,100,000 when previous ones are included. government adopted recently, is particularly practical and promising. Indeed, a test, involving 3,500 Indian women revealed that 5 percent of the loops were removed because of discomfort, and 5 percent were Of the remaining 90 percent, 99 percent were expelled naturally. effective (Mandelbaum, 1974:82; Lader, 1970:138). Vasectomy, however, has been approved by the government too According to Spate and reluctantly and too late (Lader, 1970:137-138). Learmonth (1967:147), "success with contraception and the rhythm method has been so limited that the government department concerned has turned, as a despenite remedy, to sterilization, especially of men once they have say three children including at least one son; there is even some tendency to regard the planned increase of medical practitioners as an From additional force of potential vasectomists, a sterile objective! the beginning of the campaign to encourage vasectomy in 1956 to April 1962 the total number of operations performed was only some 98,000 This form of campaign seems doomed mostly in Madras and Maharashtra. to failure, probably implying undesirable social, psychological and In the early 1960's, the Madras program international consequences." "provided 40 rupees for travel and loss of working time as wen as a While that program liberal finder's fee to the already vasectomized. 6 was in effect it accounted for a large proportion of the vasectomies in all India and the number was cut by a large proportion when the finder's fee was discontinued, only to recover when the fee was reinotated" Still, by 1969, India had more than 50 percent (Berelson, 1969:356). of all sterilization operations in the world (Mandelbaum, 1974:8-10). Other birth control methods, such as pills, diaphragms, pessaries, foam tablets, and jellies, require a higher income, modern plumbing, bathrooms, adequate lighting, privacy, and diligent application, which are not prevalent in India (Mandelbaum, 1974:82; Lader, 1970:137-138). These difficulties explain why, of all Indian couples in the reproductive years, only 13.44 million, or 13.3 percent, are protected Unfortunately, many of these couples include those using in some way. IUD's that have been extracted, and sterilized older persons who have Accordingly, the reduction already had all the children they desired. in the birth rate has not been spectacular (Mandelbaum, 1974:8-10). It has been stated that neither "Buddhist nor Abortion. C. Hindu theology contains any scriptural prohibitions against early abortion, treating as a social rather than religious issue. In fact, the Indian government in 1965 began to investigate the legalization of all abortion, modeled on the Japanese system" (where "no religious or ethical objections to abortion have ever been raised") "as part of its policy on population control" (Lader, 1970:94; of. Nevertheless, Indian classics, such as the Kapadia, 1966:100). Rig-Veda, Ramayana, iIahabharata, and the Laws of Manu, do mention abortion and even condemn it as a serious sin, although they recognize exceptional cases, ,since there was no agreement concerning the exact For instance, at least two passages in the Laws of beginning of life. Manu refer very critically to women "who have caused an abortior" or 7 "destroyed the embryo" (V,90; XI,88). The first modern law dealing with abortion in India was the Indian Penal Code of 1860 which, under classical and British influences, defined induced abortion as a crime, the penalties for the guilty mother and the abortionist being quite severe, unless the operation was Thus, many women sought illegal therapeutic (Sections 312-314). abortions that had tragic physical and psychological consequences, as a For this result of which public opinion gradually became more liber, 1. reason, in September 1964, the Ministry of Health and Family Planning In December 1966, the appointed a committee to study abortion. committee issued its famous report, advocating liberalization of the On abortion law (Ministry of Health and Family Planning, 1966). 1967, Minister Chandrasekhar recommended acceptance of this October 7, report, and in 1969, the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Bill was The resulting Medical introduced (Chandrasekhar, 1970:246-249). Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1971 "allows induced abortion by a registered medical practitioner, where the length of the pregnancy does ac.Ang not exceed 12 weeks; or by two registered medical practitioners, together, where the length of the pregnancy exceeds 12 weeks but does Pregnancies can be terminated only if the medical not exceed 20. practitioners are of the opinion that (1) there is a risk to the life (2) there is a risk that or physical (Jr mental health of the mother, or The law the child would be born with physical or mental abnormalities. further provides that pregnancies caused by rape or due to the failure of family planning devices are cases where continued pregnancy is considered to have negative consequences for the mental health of the The present abortion law in India is quite liberal and, in mother. in Denmark or Sweden" (Mohan, 1975). many respects, simillx to the laws 8 Some studies indicate that in India's provinces, three methods of induced abortion have usually been employed: Introducing a stick with an irritant into the cervix by a 1. barber^ midwife, this being the most common technique. Medicines obtained from native or homeopathic doctors. 2. Papaya, jaggery, and other self-administered oral medicines 3. (Mandelbaum, 1974:73). Unfortunately, there are extremely few studies of induced abortion Moreover, "vital statistics on spontaneous in India (Bhowmik, 1975). and induced abortions in India are not available" (Mohan, 1975). A limited 1966 report indicates that "out of every 100 pregnancies, 73 result in live births, 10 in natural abortions (miscarriages), 2 presumably in stillbirths, and 15 are terminated by induced abortions." This would give 3,900,000 induced abortions annually, and at the present time about 4,200,000 (I4andelbaum, 1974:70-71). Other estimates report 5,000,000 cases a year, and that "more than 90 per cent of the women who have indlIced abortions are married because of the near universality of the marital state in India and the relai,ively young age at which most Indian girls get married" (Chandrasekhar, 1970:245). The Problem II. ttlthough social science departments in Indian colleges and universities have emphasized armchair theorizing at the expense of empirical research (Kuppuswamy, 1972), there are countless empirical studies dealing with the Indian family, most of which have been conducted by Indian scholars. These investigations cover the family institution in general (Basham, 1963; Ross, 1967; Shah, 1974; Srinivas, 1942), as well as specific subjects, such as family types (Desai,1936; Ehrenfelo, 1953; Nimkoff and Gore, 1959; Orenstein, 1961; Owens, 1971; 9 Singh, 1968), family changes (Rungachery, 1960), exogamy (Karandikar, 1929), kinship (Mayer, 1960), marriage age(Yadau, 1971), housing (Rao, 1974), the family cycle (Collver, 1963), women (Kapur, 1970; Floris, 1962; Gupta, 1970), fertility and family planning (Agarwala, 1967; Dandekar, 1967; Husain, 1970; Prasad and Ghosh, 1956; Raj4n, 1967; Vig, 1970), and so on. Research dealing with young Indians' attitudes toward the family and other social institutions is also fairly common (Desai, 1967; It seems, however, that Mukerji, 1945; 3inha and Upadhyay, 1960). there are no studies of abortion attitudes, although overpopulation and It is for democratization make such research both timely and useful. this reason that the author has conducted what appears to be the first investigation of attitudes toward abortion among univesity students in India. with As this is part of a major international study dealing abortion and oral contraception (Bardis, 1971; 1972a; 1972b; 1973a; 1973b; 1975), it has been theorized, sometimes inductively, that More education and even religiosity constitute influential forces. specifically, university education, w.aich generates a high degree of familiarity with a variety of social systems, epistemological concepts, ontological objects, and axiological principles, tends to result in intellectual scepticism and cultural relativism, thus operating as a Also, liberalizing and, attitudinally, even fairly equalizing variable. conservative religious systems, due to the traditional indoctrination and socialization that they emphasize, usually preclude the adoption of liberal ideologies by their adherents. Accordingly, the following hypotheses have been formulated: University students tend to approve of abortion. 1.