Design and implementation of an online weekly survey to study unintended pregnancies

Jennifer S. Barber, University of Michigan
Yasamin Kusunoki, University of Michigan
Heather H. Gatny, University of Michigan
William G. Axinn, University of Michigan

This paper describes a unique project designed to study the relationship context of unintended pregnancies. The project begins with an in-person one-hour interview with a sample of 18- and 19-year-old women in a single U.S. county. At the conclusion of this baseline interview, respondents enroll in a 2.5 year journal study -- a weekly 5-minute interview about attitudes, relationships, contraception, and pregnancy, which is completed online or via phone. The goals of this paper are twofold: (1) to describe the study design and methods so that other researchers may adapt these methods for their own purpose and (2) to investigate the types of relationships -- measured longitudinally and dynamically -- most likely to produce unintended pregnancies.