Abstract

PIP: Reproductive decisions are influenced by biology, psychology, and society. The significant complexity of reproductive decision making demands that the issue be approached with a psychological construct which lends itself well to that complexity. The author believes that intention is such a construct because it allows for gradation. Decision making implies an either/or outcome, but intentions to choose one course of action or another are graded both in terms of degree and, in some cases, by the presence of counter-intentions. Data are discussed from a study of intended and unintended pregnancy in a longitudinal study of 967 women living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Sections are: intendedness and wantedness; motivations, desires, and intentions; couple interaction; a theory of regret; beyond regret; and progenesis.