. ---- - ---- From Vital and Health Statistics of the National Center for ‘” Health“ Statwtlcs 

- “ - Number IW � December 4, 19/34

i 

PROPERTYOF 7HE “ 

PUBLICATIONS BRANCH 

EDITORIALLIBRARY 

Use of Contraception in the United States, 1982 

@ 

Q 

by Christine A. Bachrach, Ph. D., and William 

During the period 1973–82, use of sterilization as a contraceptive method increased and use of the oral contraceptive 

pill declined among wives in the childbearing ages ( 15–44 

years). By 1982, sterilization had become the leading method 

of contraception for ever married women. The method most 

commonly used by never married women in 1982 was the pill. 

ese findings are based on prelimhmry data from the National 

ey of Family Growth, Cycle III. 

The National Survey of Family Growth is conducted 

periodically by the National Center for Health Statistics on 

topics related to childbearing, family planning, and related 

aspects of maternal and child health. Most of the statistics in 

this report are based on Cycle III of this survey, which included 

interviews with a sample of 7,969 women 15–44 years of age 

in the noninstitutional population of the conterminous United 

States in 1982. Survey design and sampling variability are discussed fiut.her in the Technical notes. 

Data on the contraceptive status of all women of childbearing age, regardless of marital status, are presented for the 

first time in this report. Statistics for married women update 

those presented in reports based on previous cycles of the 

National Survey of Family Growth.1-3 

All women 

In 1982, about 54 percent of American women 15–44 

years of age were using some method of contraception: 18 percent were using contraceptive sterilization and 37 percent, other 

methods (table 1). Some women were not using contraception 

because they were not exposed to the risk of unintended pregnancy. 9 percent were sterile for noncontraceptive reasons 

(8 percent surgically sterile and 2 percent nonsurgically sterile), 

ercent were prejymnt or had been pregnant within 2 months 

le interview (postpartum), 4 percent were trying to become 

~ egnant, 14 percent had never had sexual intercourse, and 

6 percent had not had intercourse in the 3 months before the 

D. Mosher, Ph. D., Division of Vital Statistics 

interview. Another 7 percent were exposed to the risk of unintended pregnancy but were not using contraception for o@er 

reasons, such as indifference to the possibility of pregnancy, or 

health or religious concerns. This last group also included some 

women who had had sexual intercourse within 3 months of the 

interview but reported that they were not currently having intercourse. Such women are considered exposed to the risk of 

unintended pregnancy in order to include in the exposed population women with intermittent patterns of sexual intercourse. Of 

women who were at risk of an unintended pregnancy-those 

who had had sexual intercourse during the 3 months prior to 

interview and were not pregnant, post partum, seeking pregnancy, or nonsurgically or noncontraceptively sterile—8 8 percent were using a method of contraception and 12 percent were 

not (calculated from table 1). 

The most widely used method of contraception in 1982 

was sterilization (either male or female), used by 18 percent of 

women, followed in order of popularity by the pill ( 16 percent), 

condom (7 percent), diaphragm (5 percent), and IUD (4 percent). About 2 percent of women used some form of periodic 

abstinence rhythm by calendar, temperature methods, or natural 

family planning. Each of several other methods, such as withdrawal, douche, foam, and suppositories were used by about 

1 percent or less of women. 

Black women were less likely than white women to be 

using some method of contraception (51 percent compared 

with 55 percent, including sterilization), and more likely to be 

having intercourse in the 3 rhonths before the interview but not 

using a method ( 13 percent compared with 6 percent). Female 

contraceptive sterilization was more common among black 

than white women (14 percent compared with 12 percent), 

while male contraceptive sterilization was more commonly 

relied upon by white women. Use of male or female sterilization as a contraceptive method was higher for white women 

(18 percent) than for black women (15 percent). A higher proportion of black women (20 percent) than white women 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Public Health Service 
2 aduancedata 

Table 1. Number of women 15-44 years of age and percent distribution by current contraceptive status and mathod, according to age and race: 

United States, 1982 

[Preliminary data based on a sample of the household population of the conterminoua United States, See Technical notes for estimates of sampling variability and 

definitions of terms] @ 

15–44 years 15-29 years 30-44 years 

All 

Contraceptive status and method races ~ White 

All women...,,......,...,., . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54,099 45,367 

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Sterile, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Surgical ly sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Contraceptively sterile, .,,,..... . . . . . . . . . 

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Male, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Noncontraceptiva ly sterile . 

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Nonsurgical ly sterile . ...,.,.,. . . . . . . . . . . 

Pregnant, post partum. ..,,..... . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Seeking pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Other nonusers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Never had intercourse .,....... 

Nointarcourse inlast3 months 

intercourse inlast3 months ...,, 

Nonsurgical contraceptors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Pill 

IUD: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::: 

Diaphragm .,, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Condom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Foam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Periodic abstinence..,.....,,. . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Natural family planning . ...,.,... . . . . . . . . 

Withdrawal, , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Douche ...,.......,....,,,., 

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Suppositories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

llncludes white, black, and other races 

100.0 100.0 

27.3 27.8 

25.7 26.2 

17.9 18,4 

12.0 11,6 

5.9 6.7 

7.9 7.8 

7.4 7,3 

0.5 “0.5 

1.5 1,6 

5.0 4,9 

4.2 4,0 

27.0 26.3 

13,7 13.9 

6.0 6.0 

7,3 6.4 

36,6 37.1 

15,5 15.1 

3.9 3.8 

4,5 5.0 

6.7 7.2 

1,3 1.4 

2.2 2.2 

0.3 “0.4 

1.1 1.2 

“0.1 0.0 

1.3 1.2 

0.7 0.6 

(15 percent) used the oral contraceptive pill. By contrast, white 

women were more likely than black women to rely on the diaphragm (5 percent compared with 2 percent) and condom 

(7 percent compared with 3 percent). Differences by race in 

use of the pill and diaphragm were significant among women 

aged 15–29, but not among older women. 

A smaller proportion of women 15–29 years of age compared with women 30-44 years of age was using a method of 

contraception (49 compared with 62 percent, including sterilization). This difference occurs because of substantial differences in the proportions of younger and older women who had 

never had sexual intercourse (23 and 2 percent, respectively), 

or were pregnant, post partum, or seeking pregnancy (12 and 

6 percent); and despite the fact that younger women are less 

likely than older women to be nonusers because they are sterile 

for noncontraceptive reasons (2 and 18 percent, respectively). 

To some extent, the lower proportion of younger than older 

women using a method also reflects the greater predominance 

of unmarried women among younger women; as discussed in a 

later section, unmarried women are more likely than currently 

married women to be having intercourse but not using a method. 

Use of contraceptive sterilization and oral contraceptives 

All All 

Black racasq Whita Black races 1 White Black 

Number in thousands 

6,985 30,413 25,239 4,223 23,686 20,128 2,762 

Percent distribution 

100.0 100.0 100.0 I 00.0 100,0 100.0 100.0 

23.7 8.0 7.7 9.5 52.0 52.9 45.4 

22.3 7.1 6.8 8.8 49,7 50.5 42.9 

15.0 5.6 5.4 7.0 33.6 34.6 27.1 

14.2 3.7 3.1 6.6 22,6 22.3 25.8 

“0.7 2.0 2.3 “0.4 11,0 12.4 *1.3 

7.3 1.5 1.4 1.8 16.1 15.9 15.7 

7.3 1.4 1.3 1.8 15.0 14.8 15.7 

0.0 “0.1 “0.1 1.0 *1.1 0.0 

“1.4 0.9 “1.0 “0.7 2.3 2.4 *2.5 

5.6 6.9 6.6 8.3 2.4 2.6 *1.4 

5.4 4.6 4.6 4.6 3.7 3.3 6,5 

29.6 37.3 37,1 36.0 13.7 12.7 19.9 

10.3 22.7 23,4 16.6 2.0 2.0 *0.8 

5.9 6.2 6.3 5.6 5.7 5.6 6.4 

13.4 8.4 7.4 13.9 6.0 5.0 12.6 

35.7 43.2 43.9 41.5 28.1 28,5 26,7 

19.8 23.3 22.9 27.8 5.6 5.3 7,7 

4.7 3.1 2,9 4.1 5.0 5.0 5.7 

1.8 5.2 5.9 “1.2 3.6 3.9 

3.2 6.1 6.5 3.5 7.5 8.0 * 1.4 1.0 1.1 ‘0.8 1.7 1.7 

1.6 1.8 1.9 *1.5 2.6 2.7 *1.P 

“0.1 ‘0.3 “0.3 ‘0.1 “0.4 ‘0.4 *0.3 

“0.7 1.4 1.6 “0.7 “0.6 “0.7 “0.7 

“0.7 ‘0.1 “0.6 *o. 1 0.0 “0.9 

1,7 1.2 1.3 *1.4 1.3 1.2 *2.2 

“1,0 “0.5 *0.4 “1.0 “0.9 “0.9 “1.1 

differed markedly by age. About 23 percent of women 15-29 

years of age were using the pill, compared with less than 

6 percent of women aged 30-44. By contrast, less than 6 percent of women aged 15–29, compared with about 34 percent of 

women aged 30–44, used sterilization as a method of contraception. These differences in method choices probably reflect a 

number of factors, including the greater probability that older 

women had completed their families and were able to choose 

permanent methods of contraception, and concerns about the 

health effects of pill use among older women.4 

Trends among currently married women 

Table 2 presents data on the contraceptive status and 

method choices of cr.nently married women for the years 1973, 

1976, and 1982. This table focuses on currently married women 

because never married women were not fully represented in 

surveys conducted in 1973 and 1976 (see Technical note9 

“Other nonusers’’—women who were hot using contraception 

for reasons other than pregnancy or noncontraceptive sterility— 

are not differentiated in table 2 by whether they ever or recently 

had sexual intercourse, because data are not available for the 
aduancdata 3 

Table 2. Number of currently married women 15-44 years of age and percent distribution by current contraceptive status and method, according 

o race: United States, 1973, 1976, and 1982 

tistics are based on samples of the household population of the conterminous United States. See Technical notes for estimstes of ssmpling variability and definitions 

terms. Data for 1982 are preliminary] @ 

All races 1 White Black 

Contraceptive status and method 1982 19762 19732 7982 19762 19732 ?982 19762 19732 

e 

Number in thousands 

Allcurrently married women . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28,231 27,488 26,646 25,195 24,795 24,249 2,130 2,169 2,081 

Percent distribution 

Tote! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 

Sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40.9 30.0 23.9 41.1 30.7 24.0 37.8 24.4 22.7 

Surgically sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38.9 28.2 22.9 38.9 29.0 23.2 36.3 21.6 20.8 

Contraceptively sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.9 18.6 16.4 28.2 19.3 16.5 23.2 12.7 14.6 

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.4 9.5 8.6 17.0 9.6 8.2 21.0 10.9 13.6 

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.4 9.0 7.8 11.2 9.7 8.4 2.2 *1.7 1.0 

Noncontraceptively sterile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 9.7 6.5 10.7 9.7 6.6 13.2 9.0 6.2 

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 8.9 6.3 9.8 8.9 6.3 13.1 8.7 6.1 

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *1.O 0.7 0.2 “1.0 0.8 0.3 *0.1 *0.1 

Nonsurgically sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “2.0 1.7 0.9 *2.1 1.7 0.8 “1.4 2.7 1.9 

Pregnant, post partum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 6.8 7.3 7.2 6.8 7.4 6.1 6.8 6.8 

Seeking pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7 6.5 7.0 6.6 5.9 6.8 8.5 9.6 7.1 

Other nonusers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.0 7.6 8.7 4.5 7.1 7.8 9.8 13.3 17.9 

Nonsurgical contraceptors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40.1 49.2 53.2 40.6 49.5 54.0 37.8 45.9 45.4 

Pill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.5 22.5 25.1 13.4 22.6 25.1 15.6 22.2 26.3 

IUD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8 6.3 6.7 4.8 6.3 6.6 5.9 6.2 7.6 

Diaphragm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5 2.9 2.4 4.7 3.0 2.5 3.3 1.8 1.2 

Condom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.8 7.3 9.4 10.2 7.5 9.9 4,3 4.6 3.2 

Foam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.0 3.0 3.5 2.0 2.9 3.5 *2.1 3.8 3.0 

Periodic abstinence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 3.4 2.8 3.3 3.5 2.9 *2.4 *1.4 “0.8 

Withdrawal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *1.2 2.0 1.5 *1.2 2.1 1.6 “0.1 1.8 “0.4 

ouch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *0. I 0.7 0.6 0.0 0.6 0.5 “1.0 2.7 1.8 

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *1.O 1.0 1.3 ‘0.9 1.0 1.4 “2.1 *1.4 1.0 

1Includas white, black, and other races. 

21ncludes unmarried women living with a partner. 

previous cycles, and, in 1982, virtually all currently married 

women had had intercourse with the last 3 months. 

During the period 1973-82, the proportion of currently 

married women w’howere other nonusers declined from about 

9 percent in 1973 to 5 percent in 1982. The proportions pregnant or post partum, or seeking pregnancy did not change significantly over the decade, while the proportion surgically sterile 

for noncontraceptive reasons increased. The percent of all wives 

using a method (including sterilization) remained about the 

same. However, among wives at risk of an unintended pregnancy (excluding those who were pregnant or post partum, 

seeking pregnancy, or nonsurgically or noncontraceptively 

sterile), the proportion using contraception increased from 

89 percent in 1973 to 93 percent in 1982 (calculated from 

table 2). 

As reported e1sewhere,3’5the rather substantial increase in 

noncontraceptive surgical sterility between 1973 and 1976 

was largely or entirely due to a change in the wording of a 

question concerning the contraceptive intent of sterilizing 

operations (see Technical notes). If surgical sterilizations had 

en classified in 1976 and 1982 by the same question as in 

e 73, we would expect the percents using contraceptive sterilization and using any method of contraception in 1976 and 1982 

to be somewhat higher. 

During the period 1973–82, the proportion of currently 

married women using the pill declined substantially, from 25 to 

14 percent, while the proportion using contraceptive sterilization increased substantially, from 16 to 28 percent. These 

changes occurred mainly between 1976 and 1982. The increase 

in sterilization between 1976 and 1982 was limited mainly to 

female operations (10 percent of wives in 1976 and 17 percent 

in 1982). Use of the IUD declined slightly between 1973 and 

1982, from 7 to 5 percent, while use of the diaphragm increased 

slightly, from 2 to 5 percent. The proportion of wives using the 

condom declined from 9 percent in 1973 to 7 percent in 1976, 

and then increased again to 10 percent in 1982. 

Never married women 

As table 3 shows, one half of never married women either 

had never had sexual intercourse (39 percent), or were not 

having intercourse during the 3 months prior to the interview 

(an additional 11 percent). Very few of the never married 

women were pregnant, post partum, or seeking pregnancy 

(4 percent), and even fewer were noncontraceptively sterile 

(2 percent, data not shown). About 35 percent were using 

some method of contraception, including sterilization, and 

10 percent had had intercourse in the 3 months before the interview but were not using a method. 

The proportion of never married women using contracep 

tion is largely determined by the proportions who have ever 

had sexual intercourse, and who have had intercourse recently 
4 acklncedata 

Table 3. Number of never married women 15-44 years of age and percent distribution by current contraceptive status and method, according 

to age and race: United States, 1982 

[Preliminary data based on a sample of the household population of the contermirmus United States. See Technicsl notes for estimates of sampling variability snd definiti 

of terms] 

Contraceptive status 

and method 

All never married women. . . . 

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Sterile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Contraceptively sterile . . . 

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Pregnant, post partum, 

seeking pregnancy. . 

Other nonusers .,, . . . . . . . . . 

Never had intercourse . . . 

No intercourse in last 

3 months...,,,....,,.. 

Intercourse in last 

3 months. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Nonsurgical contraceptors. . . 

Pill 

IUD”::::::::::::::::::: 

Diaphragm, . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Condom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Foam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Periodic abstinence . . . 

Natural family 

planning . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Withdrawal . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Douche . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Suppositoriea ., . . 

15-44 years 

All 

racesq White 

19,162 14,948 

100.0 100.0 

3.3 2.0 

1.8 “1.0 

1.1 “0.3 

“0.6 “0.8 

3.7 2.3 

59.9 63.5 

38.7 42.4 

11.3 12.5 

10.0 8.6 

33.1 32.2 

18.5 17,2 

1.8 “1,2 

4.8 5.7 

4.1 4.3 

“0.4 “0.3 

“0.9 “0.8 

“0.1 “0.1 

1,2 1.4 

“0.1 

1.3 1.4 

“0.4 “0.3 

15-19 years 

Total 15-17 years 

All All 

Black races~ White Black races~ White Black 

Number in thousands 

3,543 8,839 7,193 1,377 4,968 3,971 818 

Percent distribution 

100.0 100,0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 

8.6 “0.5 “0.6 “0.4 *0.5 “0.5 ‘0.4 

5.3 *0. I *o. 1 

5.1 

“0.2 “0.1 “0.1 

10.3 4,0 3.0 9.2 *3.6 *2.5 9.1 

43.1 73.6 75.5 61.7 82.9 84.8 72.3 

20.3 57.1 59.8 42.1 69.6 72.1 55.9 

7.2 6.5 6.9 *3.6 4.9 5.0 *3.8 

15.5 10.0 8.8 15.6 8.3 7.7 12.6 

38.0 21.9 21.0 28.7 13.1 12.2 18.2 

25.5 13.7 12.6 20.5 8.3 7.6 11.8 

3.5 “0.2 0.0 *1.2 “0.2 “0.0 “0.8 

“1.1 *1.4 “1.6 “0.6 *0.5 “0.5 “0.3 

3.4 4.9 5.2 “3.7 “3.3 *3.5 *2.6 

“1.1 “0.1 *0.6 *0.1 - *0.4 

“1.0 “0.5 “0.5 “0.7 “0.2 *0. I ‘0.6 

“0.6 “0.7 *0.8 “0.5 “0.5 “0.4 ‘0.6 

‘0.6 “o. 1 ‘0.4 “0.1 “0.6 

*1.2 “0.3 “0.3 “0.5 *O. 1 “0.4 

‘0.8 *o. 1 “o. 1 “0.3 “0.0 “0.1 

20-44 years 

All 

races~ White Black 

10,323 7,755 2,166 

100,0 100.0 100.0 

5.6 3.4 13.8 

3.2 *1.9 8.6 

2.1 “0.5 8.3 

*1.1 “1.4 “0.3 

3.5 “1.6 10.9 

48.2 52.2 31.3 

22.8 26.1 6.5 

15.4 17.7 9.4 

10.0 8.4 15.4 

42.7 42.7 44.0 

22.7 21.4 28.7 

3.1 *2.4 4.9 

7.6 9.5 *1.5 

3.4 3.5 3. 

* ‘0.7 ‘0.5 * *1.2 ‘1.0 

* 

“0.1 “0.2 

‘1.6 ‘2.0 “0.7 

*o. 1 ‘0.7 

2.1 *2.4 “1.7 

“0.7 “0.6 *1.1 

Ilncludes white, black, end other races, 

(in the 3 months prior to interview). These proportions vary 

sharply by the age and race of never married women. About 

70 percent of women aged 15-17, 57 percent of women aged 

15–1 9, and 23 percent of women aged 20–44 had never had 

intercourse. An additional 5, 7, and 15 percent of these women, 

respectively, had not had intercourse in the 3 months prior to 

the interview. Black, never’ married women were more likely 

than white women to have had intercourse, both ever and in the 

3 months prior to interview. 

Table 4 shows the percent of never married women using a 

method of contraception among those who were exposed to the 

risk of unintended pregnancy (that is, contraceptors and noncontraceptors who had sexual intercourse in the 3 months 

before the interview and were not noncontraceptively sterile, 

pregnant, post partum, or seeking pregnancy). Among these 

women, white and black women were about equally likely to be 

using a method of contraception (77 and 73 percent, respectively). Women 20–44 years of age were more likely to be 

using a method than women 15– 19 years of age (80 percent 

compared with 68 percent). 

Table 4 also shows that over half of never married women 

who used some method of contraception used the oral contraceptive pill (53 percent). The diaphragm and condom were 

next in popularity, used by 14 and 12 percent of contraceptors, 

respectively. About 5 percent of never married contraceptors 

used sterilization, and 5 percent used the IUD. About 11 percent used other methods, including withdrawal (3 percent), 

periodic abstinence (3 percent), foam ( 1 percent), and suppositories (1 percent, data not shown). 

As in the case of all women, the method choices of never 

married women differed appreciably by age and race. Younger 

women (aged 15– 19) were more likely than older women (aged 

20–44) to use the pill or condom, while older women were 

more likely to use a diaphragm, IUD, or sterilization. White 

women were more likely than black women to use the diaphragm. 

Race differences for other individual methods were not statistically significant, but taken as a group, the more effective 

methods (pill, IUD, or sterilization) were more commonly 

used by black than white women. 

Compared with currently married women, never ma 

women who were apparently at risk of an unintended pregnant *

were less likely to be using a method of contraception. Excluding noncontracepting women who had never had intercourse; 

had not had intercourse during the 3 months prior to interview, 
adwancedata 5 

Table 4. Number of never married women 15-44 years of age who were exposed to the risk of an unintended pregnancy, and percent using 

a method of contraception, by race and age, and percent distribution of contraceptors by method of contraception, according to race and age: 

United States, 1982 

Preliminary data based on a sample of the household population of the comerminous United States. see Technical notes for estimates of aampli”g variability a“d 

s definitions of terms] 

Method of contraception 

Using a All Other 

Race and age Exposedl method methods Sterilization Pill IUD Diaphragm Condom methodsz 

Number in 

A11-races3 thousands Percent Percent distribution 

15-44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,727 76.1 100.0 5.1 53.2 5.0 13.7 11.8 11.2 

15-19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,872 67.6 100.0 “0.4 62.2 “0.9 “6.4 22.3 *7.6 

15-17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,081 60.0 100.0 63.7 *1.3 “3.6 25.0 *6.4 

20-44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,855 80.3 100.0 7.0 49.5 6.7 16.6 7.5 12.7 

White 

15-44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,372 77.4 100.0 *3.1 51.6 “3.7 17.1 13.0 11.4 

15-19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,188 69.0 100.0 “0.6 59.6 “0.1 *7.8 24.7 * 7.3 

15-17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 803 60.2 100.0 62.4 “0.3 *4.4 “28.6 *4.2 

20-44, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,184 81.8 100.0 *4.2 48.1 *5.4 21.2 7.9 13.2 

Black 

75-44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,098 73.0 100.0 12.1 58.9 8.0 *2.6 7.9 10.4 

15-19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 618 63.9 100.0 71.4 *4.2 “2.0 *13.O *9.5 

15–17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 58.7 100.0 65.1 *4.5 “1.5 *14.5 “14.3 

20-44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,480 76.9 100.0 16.3 54.6 9.4 *2.9 6.1 10.7 

1Includes women using contraception and those not using contraception who had sexual intercourse in the last 3 months and were not pregnant, post partum, seeking


pregnancy, or noncontraceptively sterile.


‘Includes foam, periodic abstinence, withdrawal, douche, suppositories, and other methods.


31ncludes white, black, and other races. 

�were noncontraceptively sterile; or were pregnant, post partum, 

or seeking pregnancy, 93 percent of currently married women, 

compared with 76 percent of never married women, were using 

a method. Never married women who used a method were 

about as likely as currently married contraceptors to use one of 

References 

lNational center for Health Statistics, K. Ford: 03ntraC@Ve utilization, United States. Vital and Health Statistics. Series 23, No. 2. 

DHEW Pub. No. (PHS) 79-1978. Public Health Service. Washington. 

U.S. Government Printing Otlice, Sept. 1979. 

ZNational Center for Health Statistics, W. Moshec Contraceptive 

utilization, United States, 1976. Vital and Health Statistics. Series 

23, No. 7. DHHS Pub. No. (PHS) 81-1983. Public Health Service. 

Washington. U.S. Government Printing Office, Mar. 1981. 

3National Center for Health Statistics, W. Mosher and C. Westoff: 

Trends in Contraceptive Practice. United States. 1965–76. Vital and 

ealth Statistics. ‘Series 23, No. 10. DHH”S Pub. No. (PHS) c2-1986. Public Health Service. Washington. U.S. Government

Printing Office, Feb. 1982. 

4R. A. Hatcher, G. K. Stewart, F. Stewart, et al.: Contraceptive 

Technology 1982-1983, 1Ith ed. New York. Irvington Publishers, 

1982. 

the more effective methods-the pill, IUD, or sterilization (63 

versus 68 percent, respectively). However, pill use was much 

more common among never married women, and sterilization 

was much more common among currently married women, refleeting differences in age and previous childbearing experience. 

5W. Pratt, W. Grady, J. Menken, and J. Trussell: An overview of 

experience with vaginal contraceptives in the United States, in 

G. Zatuchni, A. Sobrero, J. Speidel, and J. Sciarra, eds., Vaginal 

Contraception: New Developments. Hagerstown, Md. Harper and 

ROW, 1980. 

6National Center for Health Statistics, D. French The National 

Survey of Famiiy Growth, Cycle I %rnple design, estimation procedures, and variance estimation. Vital and Health Statistics. Series 

2, No. 76. DHEW Pub. No. (PHS) 78–1350. Public Health Service. 

Washington. U.S. Government Printing OEice, Jan. 1978. 

7Nationrd Center for Health Statistics, W. Grady The National Survey 

of Family Growth, Cycle II: Sample design, estimation procedures, 

and variance estimation. Vital and Health Stahktics. Series 2, 

No. 87. DHHS Pub. No. (PHS) 81–1361. Public Health Service. 

Washington. U.S. Government Printing OffIce, Feb. 1981. 
6 achmncedata 

Technical notes 

Survey design 

The National Survey of Family Growth is conducted 

periodically by the National Center for Health Statistics to 

collect data on fertility, family planning, and related aspects of 

maternal and child health. Field work for Cycle I was conducted under contract in 1973 by the National Opinion Research 

Center. Field work for Cycles II and III was conducted by 

Westat, Inc., in 1976 and 1982, respectively. 

In all cycles, personal interviews were conducted with a 

multistage area probability sample of women 15–44 years of 

age in the noninstitutional population of the conterminous 

United States. In Cycles I and II, ever married women and 

never married women with offspring living in the household 

were eligible for the survey. In Cycle III, all women 15–44 

years were eligible regardless of marital status or the presence 

of offspring. Women living in group quarters (such as college 

dormitories) were excluded from the samples in Cycles I and 

II, but included in Cycle III. Interviews were conducted with 

9,797 women in Cycle I, 8,611 in Cycle II, and 7,969 in Cycle 

III. The sample designs of Cycles I and II are described in 

more detail in other reports of the National Center for Health 

Statistics. b,’ 

Field work for Cycle III was conducted between August 

1982 and February 1983. Black women and women aged 

15–1 9 were oversampled. Interviews were conducted by trained 

female interviewers and lasted an average of one hour. The 

interview focused on a woman’s pregnancy history; use of contraceptives in each pregnancy interval; ability to bear children; 

future childbearing expectations; use of family planning and 

infertility services; marital history; labor force participation; 

and a wide range of social, economic, and demographic characteristics. 

Reliability of estimates 

Because the statistics presented in this report are based on 

a sample, they may differ from the statistics that would result if 

all 54 million women represented by the National Survey of 

Family Growth had been interviewed. The standard error of an 

estimate (SE) is a measure of such differences. The standard 

error of an estimated number or percent presented in this report 

may be calculated by using the appropriate values of A and B 

from table I in the equations, 

B 1/2 

= A+p XN SE(N) () 

and 

100– P’ 112 

SE(P) = (

l?x P’x Xl )

where Y is the number of women, P is the percent, and X is 

the number of women in the denominator of the percent. Approximate standard errors for estimated percents of women of 

all races in Cycle III are shown in table II. 

Table 1. Estimates of A and B for calculating standard errors, by 

cycle, marital status, and race: National Survey of Family Growth o 

Cycle, marital status, and race A B 

CYCLE I 

Currently married women 

Allraces and white . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.000017613 4493.7916 

Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.000040219 1600.4393 

CYCLE II 

Currently married women 

All races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . –0.0001 85899 6751.0619 

White and other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . –0.000205624 7021.1665 

Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . –0.000631040 2798.6440 

CYCLE Ill 

Ever married women 

Allraces and white . . . . . . . . . . . –0.001 097329 .39809 .1677 

Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . –0.000908632 6346.0484 

Never married women 

Allraces and whita . . . . . . . . . . . –0.000935104 17608.8833 

Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . –0.000908632 6346.0484 

Table 11. Approximate standard errors for estimated percents 

(expressed in percent) for women of all races: National Survey of 

Family Growth, Cycle Ill 

Estimated percent 

Base of 2 or 5 or 10or 200r 300r 400r 

percent 98 95 90 80 70 60 50 

100,000 . . . . . . 6.5 10.1 13.8 18.5 21.2 22.6 23.1 

500,000 . . . . . . 2.9 4.5 6.2 8.3 9.5 10.1 10.3 

1,000,000 . . . . 2.0 3.2 4.4 5.8 6.7 7.2 7.3 

5,000,000 . . . 0.9 1.4 2.0 2.6 3.0 3.2 3.3 

10,000,000 . . . 0,6 1.0 1.4 1.8 2.1 2.3 2,3 

30,000,000 . . . 0,4 0.6 0.8 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.3 

50,000,000 . . . 0.3 0.4 0.6 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.0 

The chances are about 68 in 100 that a sample estimate 

would fall within one standard error, and about 95 in 100 that 

it would fall within two standard errors of a statistic based on a 

complete count of the population represented by the National 

Survey of Family Growth. Differen~es between percents discussed in this report were found to be statistically significant at 

the 95-percent confidence level using a two-tailed t-test with 

39 degrees of freedom. This means that in repeated samples of 

the same type and size, a difference as large as the one observed 

would occur in only 5 percent of samples, if there were, in fact, 

no difference between the percents in the population. 

The relative standard error of a statistic is the ratio of the 

standard error to the statistic and is usually expressed as 

percent of the estimate. In this report, statistics with relativ 

standard errors of 30 percent or larger are indicated with anm 

asterisk (*). These estimates are considered unreliable by themselves, but may be combined with other estimates to make 

comparisons of greater precision. 
a&medaa7 

e 

Statistics in this Yeport also maybe subject to nonsampling 

or, that is, errors or omissions in responding to the interview, 

ecording answers, and processing data. The data have been 

adjusted for nonsampling error resulting from nonresponse by 

means of adjustments to the sample weights assigned to each 

case. Other types of nonsampling error were minimized by a 

series of stringent quality control measures similar to those 

used in Cycles I and 11.6,7 

Definitions of terms 

Contraceptive status 

Sterile—A currently married woman was classified as 

sterile for the purposes of determining cument contraceptive 

status if she reported that it was impossible for her and her 

husband to have a baby. An unmarried woman was classified 

as sterile if she reported that it was impossible for her to have a 

baby, or if her current method of contraception was male sterilization. 

Nonsurgical-A woman (or couple) was classified as 

nonsurgically sterile if she reported that it was impossible for 

her to have a baby for any reason other than surgical sterilization. Reported nonsurgical reasons for sterility included menopause and sterility resulting from accident, illness, or congenital 

causes. 

Surgicai—A woman (or couple) was classified as surgically 

terile if she or her husband were completely sterile due to an 

operation. 

Because surgical sterilizations are very frequently obtained 

exclusively or partly as methods of contraception, that is, because of their complete effectiveness against conception rather 

than for purely therapeutic reasons, they have been further 

classitled as contraceptive and noncontraceptive. In Cycle I, a 

sterilizing operation was contraceptive if the respondent answered 

“yes” to the question “Was the operation done at least partly 

so that you would not have any more children?” The question 

was reworded in Cycles II and III to “Was one reason for the 

operation because you had all the children you wanted?” 

The percents of women contraceptively and noncontracep 

tively sterile are not fully comparable between Cycle I and 

Cycles II and III. The rewording of the question cited above 

probably reduced the percent of sterilizing operations classified 

as contraceptive, because an operation done to prevent a pregnancy that would be dangerous to the woman’s health usually 

would have been reported as contraceptive in Cycle I, but as 

noncontraceptive in Cycles II and III. Also, in Cycle I, if a 

couple had had more than one sterilizing operation-for example, a vasectomy followed a few years later by a hysterectomy—the interviewer coded the earliest operation. In Cycles 

II and III, however, the woman’s operation was given priority. 

Both of these factors tended to increase the proportion of sterileizing operations classified as noncontracepti;e in 1976 and 

982 compared with 1973. 

It should be noted that the estimates of male contraceptive 

sterilization reflect the numbers of women relying on- this 

method, and not necessarily the numbers of men who have 

been sterilized for contraceptive reasons. 

Pregnant—A woman (or couple) was classified as pregnant if she replied affiiatively to the question “Are you pregnant now?” or, for those in doubt, “Do you think you probably 

are pregnant or not?” However, a woman who reported that the 

onset of her last menstrual period was within the 30 days prior 

to the interview was automatically considered not pregnant. 

Seeking pregnancy—A woman (or couple) was classified 

as seeking pregnancy if she reported she was not using a method 

at the time of interview because she wanted to become pregnant. 

Postpartum—A woman (or couple) was classified as post 

partum if she reported she was not currently using a method, 

was not seeking a pregnancy, and her last pregnancy had terminated within 2 months before the date she was interviewed. 

Other nonusers—Women (or couples) who reported they 

were currently using no contraceptive method and could not be 

classified in any of the preceding categories of noncontraceptors 

were classified here. Among these are women who had never 

had intercourse, had not had intercourse in the last 3 months, 

were indifferent to the chances of pregnancy, had a very low 

risk of pregnancy due to some fecundity impairrnen< or objected 

to contraceptive methods for personal or religious reasons. 

Never had intercourse—A woman (or couple) was classified as never having had intercourse if she was not currently 

using a method and she had never had sexual intercourse at 

any time up to the time of interview, or if she had had sexual 

intercourse but not since her menstrual periods began. 

No intercourse in Iast 3 months—A woman (or couple) 

was classified as not having had intercourse in the last 3 months 

if she was not currently using a method and reported not having 

sexual intercourse in any of the 3 months before the interview. 

Intercourse in last 3 months—A woman (or couple) was 

classified as having intercourse in the last 3 months if she was 

not currently using a method and was having sexual intercourse 

currently or in any of the 3 months preceding the interview. 

Contraceptors—A woman (or couple) who reported use of 

a contraceptive method other than a surgical sterilization at the 

date of interview was classtied according to the specific method 

used. Methods used by extremely small proportions of the 

population such as jelly, cream, suppositories, or abstinence, 

not in combination with any other methods, were grouped in 

the category “Other.” Where more than one method was reported in current use, the method generally considered the most 

effective was used for classitlcation purposes. 

Demographic tarms 

Age—Age is classified by the age of the respondent at her 

last birthday before the date of interview. 

Race—Race refers to the race of the woman interviewed 

and is reported as black, white, or other. In Cycle III, race was 

classitled according to the woman’s report of which race best 

described her. In Cycles I and II, race was classii-ied by the 

observation of the interviewer. Comparisons of Cycle III data 

indicate that results using either method of classification are 

very similar. 

Man-tal status—Persons were classified by marital status 

as married, widowed, divorced, separated, or never married. In 

Cycles I and II, informally married women—women who volunteered that they were sharing living quarters with their sexual 

6 
---

8 admncedata 

partner-were classified as currently married. These women 

constituted about 2 percent of currently married respondents in 

Cycle I and 3 percent in Cycle II. In Cycle III, such women 

were classified according to their legal marital status. Thus, 

statistics on currently married women for 1982 shown in this 

report are not strictly comparable to those for 1973 and 1976. 

However, reclassifying women in the 1973 and 1976 surveys 

Recent Issues of Advance Data 

No. 101. 1983 Summary: National Hospital Discharge Survey 

(Issued Sept. 28, 1984) 

No. 100. CAT Scan Use in Short-Stay Non-Federal Hospitals: 

United States, 1979-82 (Issued Sept. 28, 1984) 

No. 99. Health Care of Adolescents by Oftice-Based Physicians: 

National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 1980–8 1 (Issued Sept. 

28, 1984) 

Suggested Citation 

National Center for Health Statistic, M. C. Horn 

and .+3 oshec Use of services for family 

p nning an infertility, United States, 1982. 

dvance Da From Vital and Health Statistics, 

o. 103. DH S Pub. No. (PHS) 85–1 250. Public 

[> ealth Serv”ce. Hyattsville, Md., Dec. 4, 1984 

/ 

U.* DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

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according to the 1982 definition of marital status makes little 

difference in the distributions of currently married women by 

contraceptive status for these years. 

In all cycles, women who were married but separated from9 

their spouse were classified as separated if the reason for the 

separation was marital discord, and as currently married otherwise. 

From Vital and Health Statistics 

No. 98. Diagnosis-Related Groups Using Data From the National 

Hospital Discharge Survey United States, 1981 (Issued July 20, 1984) 

No. 97. The Management of New Pain in Office-Based Ambulatory 

Care: National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 1980 and 1981 

(Issued June 13, 1984) 

Symbols 

Data not available 

. . . Category not applicable 

Quantity zero 

0.0 Quantity more than zero but less than 

0.05 

z	 Quantity more than zero but less than 

500 where numbers are rounded to 

thousands 

* Figure does not meet standards of 

reliability or precision (30 percent or 

more relative standard error) 

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permission. 

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