Desire to Avoid Pregnancy (DAP) is a 14 item self-reported measure of women's preferences regarding pregnancy. The DAP includes items across three domains related to pregnancy preferences: cognitive preferences, affective feelings, and practical consequences.
Geographies Tested: United States of America
Populations Included: Female
Age Range: Adolescents, Adults
We would like to ask you about your current thoughts and feelings about the idea of becoming pregnant in the next 3 months and having a baby in the next year. Women have very different thoughts and feelings about pregnancy and having a baby that can change over time. There are no right or wrong answers. For each question, choose one answer that seems right at this point in your life.
The following questions ask about your thoughts and feelings about the idea of becoming PREGNANT in the next 3 months. Even if you do not think you can become pregnant, please imagine how you would feel about becoming pregnant.
1. I wouldn’t mind it if I became pregnant in the next 3 months.
2. It would be a good thing for me if I became pregnant in the next 3 months.
3. Thinking about becoming pregnant in the next 3 months makes me feel unhappy.*
4. Thinking about becoming pregnant in the next 3 months makes me feel excited.
5. Becoming pregnant in the next 3 months would bring me closer to my main partner. (By main partner, we mean the romantic partner that is the most serious to you. If you don’t have a romantic partner, please think about the person with whom you last had sexual relations.)
The following questions ask about your thoughts and feelings about the idea of having a BABY in the next year. Even if you do not think you can have a baby, please imagine how you would feel about having a baby.
6. I want to have a baby within the next year.
7. If I had a baby in the next year, it would be bad for my life.*
8. It would be a positive addition to my life to have a baby in the next year.
9. It would be the end of the world for me to have a baby in the next year.*
10. Thinking about having a baby within the next year makes me smile.
11. Thinking about having a baby within the next year makes me feel stressed out.*
12. I would feel a loss of freedom if I had a baby in the next year.*
13. If I had a baby in the next year, it would be hard for me to manage raising the child.*
14. I would worry that having a baby in the next year would make it harder for me to achieve other things in my life.*
*Items reverse coded during scoring
Response Options:
Strongly agree - 0
Agree - 1
Neither agree nor disagree - 2
Disagree - 3
Strongly disagree - 4
Items were averaged to create a pregnancy preferences scale, with higher scores indicating a higher desire to avoid becoming pregnant. Scores should not be rounded, as the scale is a continuous measure.
Rocca, C. H., Ralph, L. J., Wilson, M., Gould, H., & Foster, D. G. (2019). Psychometric evaluation of an instrument to measure prospective pregnancy preferences: The Desire to Avoid Pregnancy Scale. Medical Care, 57(2), 152-158. https://doi.org/10.1097/MLR.0000000000001048
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