{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T03:01:40Z","timestamp":1787022100102,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":29,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]],"date-time":"2022-03-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1646265600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100012297","name":"Society of Family Planning","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["SFPRF11-11"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SFPRF11-11"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100012297","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Most studies of abortion access have recruited participants from abortion clinics, thereby missing people for whom barriers to care were insurmountable. Consequently, research may underestimate the nature and scope of barriers that exist. We aimed to recruit participants who had considered, but failed to obtain, an abortion using three online platforms, and to evaluate the feasibility of collecting data on their abortion-seeking experiences in a multi-modal online study. In 2018, we recruited participants for this feasibility study from Facebook, Google Ads, and Reddit for an online survey about experiences seeking abortion care in the United States; we additionally conducted in-depth interviews among a subset of survey participants. We completed descriptive analyses of survey data, and thematic analyses of interview data. Recruitment results have been previously published. For the primary outcomes of this analysis, over one month, we succeeded in capturing data on abortion-seeking experiences from 66 individuals who were not currently pregnant and reported not having obtained an abortion, nor visited an abortion facility, despite feeling that abortion could have been the best option for a recent pregnancy. A subset of survey respondents (n = 14) completed in-depth interviews. Results highlighted multiple, reinforcing barriers to abortion care, including legal restrictions such as gestational limits and waiting periods that exacerbated financial and other burdens, logistical and informational barriers, as well as barriers to abortion care less frequently reported in the literature, such as a preference for medication abortion. These findings support the use of online recruitment to identify and survey an understudied population about their abortion-seeking experiences. Further, findings contribute to a more complete understanding of the full range of barriers to abortion care that people experience in the United States, and how these barriers intersect to not just delay, but to prevent people from obtaining abortion.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0264748","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]],"date-time":"2022-03-03T14:17:00Z","timestamp":1646317020000},"page":"e0264748","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["\u201cIt just seemed like a perfect storm\u201d: A multi-methods feasibility study on the use of Facebook, Google Ads, and Reddit to collect data on abortion-seeking experiences from people who considered but did not obtain abortion care in the United States"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2488-2429","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Heidi","family":"Moseson","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jane W.","family":"Seymour","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Carmela","family":"Zuniga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alexandra","family":"Wollum","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anna","family":"Katz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Terri-Ann","family":"Thompson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Caitlin","family":"Gerdts","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]]},"reference":[{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0264748.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"857","DOI":"10.2105\/AJPH.2016.303134","article-title":"Impact of Clinic Closures on Women Obtaining Abortion Services After Implementation of a Restrictive Law in Texas","volume":"106","author":"C Gerdts","year":"2016","journal-title":"Am J Public Health"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e173","DOI":"10.1016\/j.whi.2013.03.001","article-title":"At what cost? Payment for abortion care by U.S. women","volume":"23","author":"RK Jones","year":"2013","journal-title":"Womens Health Issues"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0264748.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"60","DOI":"10.1016\/j.whi.2015.10.004","article-title":"Experience and Perceptions of Waiting Periods: Survey Evidence before Arizona\u2019s Two-visit 24-hour Mandatory Waiting Period Law","volume":"26","author":"D Karasek","year":"2016","journal-title":"Womens Health Issues"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"281","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jadohealth.2017.09.031","article-title":"The Impact of a Parental Notification Requirement on Illinois Minors\u2019 Access to and Decision-Making Around Abortion","volume":"62","author":"LJ Ralph","year":"2018","journal-title":"J Adolesc Health"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0264748.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e211","DOI":"10.1016\/j.whi.2014.01.003","article-title":"Out-of-pocket costs and insurance coverage for abortion in the United States","volume":"24","author":"SC Roberts","year":"2014","journal-title":"Womens Health Issues"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"298","DOI":"10.1016\/j.whi.2016.01.003","article-title":"Experiences Accessing Abortion Care in Alabama among Women Traveling for Services","volume":"26","author":"K White","year":"2016","journal-title":"Womens Health Issues"},{"issue":"9","key":"pone.0264748.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1687","DOI":"10.2105\/AJPH.2013.301378","article-title":"Denial of abortion because of provider gestational age limits in the United States","volume":"104","author":"UD Upadhyay","year":"2014","journal-title":"Am J Public Health"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0264748.ref008","first-page":"79","article-title":"\"It\u2019s not something you talk about really\": information barriers encountered by women who travel long distances for abortion care","volume":"100","author":"ML Kavanaugh","year":"2019","journal-title":"ContraceptionPubMed Central PMCID"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0264748.ref009","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"292","DOI":"10.1016\/j.contraception.2015.12.017","article-title":"Women\u2019s experiences seeking abortion care shortly after the closure of clinics due to a restrictive law in Texas","volume":"93","author":"L Fuentes","year":"2016","journal-title":"Contraception"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref010","volume-title":"Time to Appointment and Delays in Accessing Care Among U.S. Abortion Patients.","author":"RK Jones","year":"2016"},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0264748.ref011","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e493","DOI":"10.1016\/S2468-2667(17)30158-5","article-title":"Disparities and change over time in distance women would need to travel to have an abortion in the USA: a spatial analysis","volume":"2","author":"JM Bearak","year":"2017","journal-title":"The Lancet Public Health"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref012","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"212","DOI":"10.1016\/j.whi.2017.12.003","article-title":"Differences in Abortion Service Delivery in Hostile, Middle-ground, and Supportive States in 2014","volume":"28","author":"RK Jones","year":"2018","journal-title":"Womens Health Issues"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0264748.ref013","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"95","DOI":"10.1363\/psrh.12024","article-title":"Barriers to Abortion Care and Their Consequences For Patients Traveling for Services: Qualitative Findings from Two States","volume":"49","author":"J Jerman","year":"2017","journal-title":"Perspect Sex Reprod Health"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0264748.ref014","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"476","DOI":"10.1007\/s13178-018-0359-4","article-title":"Consideration of and Reasons for Not Obtaining Abortion Among Women Entering Prenatal Care in Southern Louisiana and Baltimore, Maryland","volume":"16","author":"SCM Roberts","year":"2018","journal-title":"Sexuality Research and Social Policy."},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref015","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100017","DOI":"10.1016\/j.conx.2019.100017","article-title":"Using Google Ads to recruit and retain a cohort considering abortion in the United States","volume":"2","author":"UD Upadhyay","year":"2020","journal-title":"Contracept X"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref016","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"113747","DOI":"10.1016\/j.socscimed.2021.113747","article-title":"State abortion policies and Medicaid coverage of abortion are associated with pregnancy outcomes among individuals seeking abortion recruited using Google Ads: A national cohort study.","volume":"274","author":"UD Upadhyay","year":"2021","journal-title":"Soc Sci Med"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0264748.ref017","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"169","DOI":"10.1001\/jamapsychiatry.2016.3478","article-title":"Women\u2019s mental health and well-being 5 years after receiving or being denied an abortion: A prospective, longitudinal cohort study","volume":"74","author":"M Biggs","year":"2017","journal-title":"JAMA Psychiatry"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0264748.ref018","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"102","DOI":"10.1186\/s12905-015-0259-1","article-title":"The effect of abortion on having and achieving aspirational one-year plans","volume":"15","author":"UD Upadhyay","year":"2015","journal-title":"BMC Womens Health"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref019","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"144","DOI":"10.1186\/s12916-014-0144-z","article-title":"Risk of violence from the man involved in the pregnancy after receiving or being denied an abortion","volume":"12","author":"SC Roberts","year":"2014","journal-title":"BMC Med"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref020","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"407","DOI":"10.2105\/AJPH.2017.304247","article-title":"Socioeconomic Outcomes of Women Who Receive and Women Who Are Denied Wanted Abortions in the United States","volume":"108","author":"DG Foster","year":"2018","journal-title":"Am J Public Health"},{"issue":"10","key":"pone.0264748.ref021","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2073","DOI":"10.1017\/S0033291714003213","article-title":"A comparison of depression and anxiety symptom trajectories between women who had an abortion and women denied one","volume":"45","author":"DG Foster","year":"2015","journal-title":"Psychol Med"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref022","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"76","DOI":"10.1186\/1472-6874-14-76","article-title":"Perceived stress and emotional social support among women who are denied or receive abortions in the United States: a prospective cohort study","volume":"14","author":"LF Harris","year":"2014","journal-title":"BMC Womens Health"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref023","article-title":"Comparison of Facebook, Google Ads, and Reddit for recruitment of people who were not able to obtain wanted abortion care in the United States","author":"H Moseson","year":"2019"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0264748.ref024","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e34","DOI":"10.2196\/jmir.6.3.e34","article-title":"Improving the quality of Web surveys: the Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys (CHERRIES).","volume":"6","author":"G. Eysenbach","year":"2004","journal-title":"J Med Internet Res"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref025","unstructured":"National Academies of Sciences E, and Medicine. The Safety and Quality of Abortion Care in the United States: The National Academies Press; 2018."},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0264748.ref026","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4","DOI":"10.1016\/j.contraception.2011.02.005","article-title":"Clinical guidelines. Labor induction abortion in the second trimester","volume":"84","author":"L Borgatta","year":"2011","journal-title":"Contraception"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref027","volume-title":"Characteristics of U.S. Abortion patients in 2014 and changes since 2008.","author":"J Jerman","year":"2016"},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0264748.ref028","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1547","DOI":"10.1007\/s10995-019-02782-9","article-title":"Stability of Retrospective Pregnancy Intention Reporting Among Women with Unwanted Pregnancies in the United States","volume":"23","author":"CH Rocca","year":"2019","journal-title":"Matern Child Health J"},{"key":"pone.0264748.ref029","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100590","DOI":"10.1016\/j.conctc.2020.100590","article-title":"Comparison of study samples recruited with virtual versus traditional recruitment methods","volume":"19","author":"H Moseson","year":"2020","journal-title":"Contemp Clin Trials Commun"}],"container-title":["PLOS ONE"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0264748","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]],"date-time":"2022-03-03T14:17:27Z","timestamp":1646317047000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0264748"}},"subtitle":[],"editor":[{"given":"Godwin Otuodichinma","family":"Akaba","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"editor"}]}],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]]},"references-count":29,"journal-issue":{"issue":"3","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0264748","relation":{},"ISSN":["1932-6203"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1932-6203","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,3,3]]}}}