REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AND REPRODUCTIVE-BEHAVIOR - CLASH OR CONVERGENCE OF PRIVATE VALUES AND PUBLIC POLICIES

Using a rational scientific approach upholding public health values, t his article notes experience gained from 25 years of cooperative trans national research on reproductive behavior A n overview of world popul ation trends is followed by discussions of reproductive rights as a hu man right, the utility of acceptability studies of modern methods of f ertility regulation, and findings from research on psychological respo nses to abortion, long-term developmental effects of compulsory pregna ncy, and the use of incentives and disincentives to influence family s ize. There is also consideration of the clash between private values a nd public policy on reproductive behavior in the United States and the convergence achieved in Denmark and the Netherlands, where rates of u nintended pregnancy are among the world's lowest.