女性主义心理学家卡罗尔·吉利根质疑以“为选择”与“为生命”的权利或正义入手是一种伦理绑架,而且这并没有从女性自身出发考虑问题。她在《不同的声音》(In a Different Voice)一书中,报告及分析了29位15-33岁、不同种族及背景的女性分别两次的访谈,她希望得知妇女如何去处理怀孕或堕胎时面临的道德处境。吉利根认为女性的犹疑不是基于缺乏对权利及正义思考的能力,反而是基于现实的复杂性。
在一项瑞典女性讨论堕胎的焦点小组研究中,有参与者认为堕胎的选择是女性“在无助中的权利”(right in a situation of distress, Ekstran, Essen & Tyde'n, 2005),也许这形容正好说明了女性在堕胎的伦理抉择中的矛盾处境,有助阐释吉利根强调的“关怀”在考虑到“权利”时的不可或缺。
Culwell KR, Vekemans M, de Silva U, Hurwitz M. Critical gaps in universal access to reproductive health: Contraception and prevention of unsafe abortion. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics. July 2010, 110: S13–16. PMID 20451196. doi:10.1016/j.ijgo.2010.04.003.
Joffe, Carole. 1. Abortion and medicine: A sociopolitical history. MPaul, ES Lichtenberg, L Borgatta, DA Grimes, PG Stubblefield, MD Creinin (编). Management of Unintended and Abnormal Pregnancy(PDF) 1st. Oxford, United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2009 [2015-11-17]. ISBN 978-1-4443-1293-5. (原始内容存档(PDF)于2011-10-21).
Kulier, R; Kapp, N; Gülmezoglu, AM; Hofmeyr, GJ; Cheng, L; Campana, A. Medical methods for first trimester abortion.. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews. 2011-11-09, (11): CD002855. PMID 22071804. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD002855.pub4.
Raymond, EG; Grossman, D; Weaver, MA; Toti, S; Winikoff, B. Mortality of induced abortion, other outpatient surgical procedures and common activities in the United States.. Contraception. Nov 2014, 90 (5): 476–479. PMID 25152259. doi:10.1016/j.contraception.2014.07.012.
Raymond, E. G.; Grimes, D. A. The Comparative Safety of Legal Induced Abortion and Childbirth in the United States. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2012, 119 (2, Part 1): 215–219. PMID 22270271. doi:10.1097/AOG.0b013e31823fe923.
Raymond, EG; Grossman, D; Weaver, MA; Toti, S; Winikoff, B. Mortality of induced abortion, other outpatient surgical procedures and common activities in the United States.. Contraception. November 2014, 90 (5): 476–9. PMID 25152259. doi:10.1016/j.contraception.2014.07.012.
Trupin, Suzanne. Elective Abortion. eMedicine. 2010-05-27 [2010-06-01]. (原始内容存档于2004-12-14). At every gestational age, elective abortion is safer for the mother than carrying a pregnancy to term.
Abbas, D; Chong, E; Raymond, EG. Outpatient medical abortion is safe and effective through 70 days gestation.. Contraception. September 2015, 92 (3): 197–9. PMID 26118638. doi:10.1016/j.contraception.2015.06.018.
World Abortion Policies 2013(PDF). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. [2013-07-31]. (原始内容存档(PDF)于2016-04-15).