Nancy Russo

Nancy Russo is a research psychologist at Arizona State University. She is a self-described feminist a pro-choice activist. She was a member of the [APA Abortion Report |APA Task Force on Abortion and Mental Health] which was chaired by Brenda Major. She has held a number of high level positions with the American Psychological Association (APA) in particular with relation to pro-choice and feminist issues. Here work has been funded by the Population Council, Family Planning.

According to her own vitae, "Dr. Nancy Felipe Russo 's research interests are foucused around Gender, violence, and health (physical, mental, and reproductive); women’s education, work, and careers, particularly in STEM fields; Hispanic women's issues; ethnic minority issues; psychology, law, and public policy; relationships among scientists, educators, and policy makers, women's studies."[1]

Statements by Russo

• Nancy Russo was quoted in January 2004 by a science reporter from the Toledo Blade newspaper saying "As far as I'm concerned, whether or not an abortion creates psychological difficulties is not relevant...it means you give proper informed consent and you deal with it". 

• "To pro-choice advocates, mental health effects are not relevant to the legal context of arguments to restrict access to abortion." Russo told Warren Throckmorton, a columnist for the Washington Times. Regarding the latter quote, it is reported that she actually said "it doesn't matter what the evidence says" but Throckmorton agreed to let her rephrase her comments after providing an advance copy of the article for her review.

• Chair of the APA's Division 35, Task Force on Reproductive Issues, Russo made the following respponse to APA member Robert Gallagher who questioned the wisdom of the APA taking "a very clearly political stance by explicitly associating itself with the Pro-Choice Forum."

ROBERT GALLAGHER'S STATEMENT has three problems: disregard of APA's history on abortion issues, naïveté about the role of values in science, and misconstrual of the pro-choice position for research on postabortion emotional responses.

In 1969, APA's Council of Representatives resolved that abortion be considered a "civil right of the pregnant woman." More recently, pro-life misrepresentation of research findings led the council to resolve that APA disseminate scientific information on reproductive issues to policy-makers and the public. Our work is a direct response to that mandate.

Gallagher naïvely assumes findings with implications for women's lives can be "apolitical." Science always reflects the values of scientists--the difference here is that we state our values up front and do not pretend scientific methods make findings value-free.

More importantly, he ignores the fact that our Web site is a response to a pro-life campaign that interprets psychological data in inappropriate and destructive ways. Given that "silence is consent," psychologists have an ethical obligation to counter such misinformation.

Finally, the Phillip Morris analogy is inapt. We have no interest, economic or otherwise, in portraying abortion as a risk-free event. A pro-choice position means that we believe abortion is the woman's choice, that women should be given accurate information and informed consent in making their reproductive choices, and that they be supported in their decisions. The charge that this activity, which is congruent with APA policy and conducted in conformance with scientific standards, "undermines the integrity" of APA is without basis.

NANCY FELIPE RUSSO, PHD

Arizona State University

LINDA J. BECKMAN, PHD

Alliant International University

Los Angeles

From this response it is clear that Russo clearly believes the APA's political position on abortion as a civil right is warrant for pro-choice activism.

Critiques of Studies By Russo

• [http://www.afterabortion.info/russo.html"A Study of Deception:

Feminist Researcher "Proves" Abortion Increases Self-Esteem"]

• Abortion-Depression Study Flawed and Misleading

• Study Fails to Address Our Previous Findings and Subject to Misleading Interpretations

• Obscuring the Suffering of Women and Compromising Science

Selected Articles by Russo

Russo, N. F. (2007). Abortion, Mental Health, and Roe vs. Wade: What Women’s Studies Scholars Need to Know. Invited Address. Northwest Women Studies Association, Corvallis, OR, November.

Russo, N.F. Science, Politics, and Abortion Research: What’s Ahead? Invited Address. APA Annual Meetings, New Orleans, LA, August 2006.

Russo, N.F. Postabortion Syndrome: What is it? What’s the evidence? Invited Address, IX Congress of the Mexican Social Psychological Association, Colima, Mexico, October, 2002.

Russo, N.F. Postabortion Syndrome: What’s the evidence? What’s the threat? Section on Women, Annual Meetings of the Canadian Psychological Association, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Russo, N.F. Understanding Postabortion Emotional Responses. Invited Address, The Psychological Sequelae of Abortion: Myths and Facts: A Symposium, sponsored by the Swiss Society of Psychiatrists and the Swiss Association of Psychotherapists, Berne, Switzerland, May, 2001.

Russo, N. F. Abortion and Mental Health: A Complex Relationship. Invited Address, 28th Interamerican Congress of Psychology, Santiago, Chile, July, 2001.

Russo, N. F. Understanding abortion attitudes and post abortion responses. Annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA, August, 1998.

Stier, S., & Russo, N. F. (1975) The abortion debate--a policy issue for psychologists. APA Monitor, 6(6), 1,3.

Russo, N. F., & Stier, S. (1975) Psychological data used to buttress abortion battle. APA Monitor, 6(7), 1,4.

Russo, N. F. (1977), Abortion rights strategists call for help. APA Monitor, 8 (7), 12-13.

Russo, N. F. (1992). Abortion and unwanted childbearing: The impact of Casey. Psychology of Women, 19(4), 1-4.

Russo, N. F. (1992). Unwanted childbearing, abortion, and women's mental health: Research findings, policy Implications. Rocky Mountain Psychologist, Fall, 9-11.

Russo, N. F. (1990). Constructing the impact of feminist thought [review]. Contemporary Psychology, 35, 475-476.

Russo, N. F. (Nov. 1989). Mental effects of abortion found negligible. The Maricopa Lawyer, 8(11), 16.

Russo, N. F. (1989). Exploring abortion's legal complexities [review]. Contemporary Psychology, 34, 171-172.

Russo, N. F. (1998-Jun.). Coping with abortion. Research News Note, Psychology Place Web Site, Peregrine Publishers, Inc.

Rubin, L. & Russo, N. F. (2002). Abortion, Informed Consent, and Mental Health. Psychological Issues Section, ProChoice Forum http://www.prochoiceforum.org.uk/psy_coun11.asp.

Russo, N. F. & Beckman, L. (2005). Psychological research and the politics of abortion. Feminist Psychologist, 32 (2), 14, 25-26.

Russo, N. F. (2007). Foreward. In Needle, R. & Walker, L. E. Abortion Counseling: A Clinician’s Guide to Psychology, Legislation, Politics, and Competency. New York: Springer.

Selected Other Publications

Melton, G., Adler, N., David, H. P., Morris, R. A., Russo, N. F., Scott, E. S., Weithorn, L. N., & Wells, K. (1987)

Adolescent abortion: Psychological and legal issues, American Psychologist, January, 73-78. Melton, G. & Russo, N. F. (1987), Adolescent abortion: Psychological perspectives on public policy. American Psychologist, January, 69-72 (Editors of Section of Psychology in the Public Forum).

Adler, N. F., David, H. P., Major, B. N., Roth, S. H., Russo, N. F. & Wyatt, G. E. (1990). Psychological responses after abortion, Science, 248 (April 6), 41-44.

Russo, N. F., *Horn, J. & *Tromp, S. (1993). Childspacing intervals and abortion among blacks and whites: A brief report. Women & Health, 20(3), 43-52.

Adler, N. F., David, H. P., Major, B. N., Roth, S. H., Russo, N. F. & Wyatt, G. E. (1992). Psychological factors in abortion: A review, American Psychologist, 47, 1194-1204.

Russo, N. F., Horn, J. & Schwartz, R. (1992). Abortion in context: Characteristics and motivations of women who seek abortion, Journal of Social Issues, 48, 182-201.

Russo, N. F. & *Zierk, K. L. (1992). Abortion, childbearing, and women's well-being, Professional psychology: Research and Practice, 23, 269-280. Digested in Family Planning Perspectives, 1992, 24 (6), 282-283; Clinician's Research Digest, 10(12), 2.

Russo, N. F. & *Dabul, A. J. (1997). The Relationship of Abortion to Well-Being: Do Race and Religion Make a Difference? Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 28, 23-31. Excerpted in Family Planning

Russo, N. F. & *Denious, J. E. (2001). Violence in the Lives of Women Having Abortions: Implications for Public Policy and Practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 32, 142-150.

Rubin, L. & Russo, N.F. (2004). Abortion and Mental Health: What Therapists Need to Know. Women & Therapy, 27 (3/4), 69-90.

Major, B., Applebaum, M., Beckman, L., Dutton, M. A., Russo, N. F., & West, C. (invited/submitted). Abortion and Mental Health: Evaluating the evidence.

Stotland, N.S., Robinson, G. E., Russo, N. F., Lang, J. A., Occhiogrosso, M.,(2009 in press) Is there an “Abortion Trauma Syndrome”?: A critical review. Harvard Review of Psychiatry

Steinberg, J. & Russo, N.F. (2008). Abortion and anxiety: What’s the relationship? Social Science & Medicine, 67, 238–252.

Denious, J. E. & Russo, N. F. (accepted contingent on revisions). Pro-life feminist: An Oxymoron? Social and political attitudes as a function of feminist self-identification and abortion stance. Psychology of Women Quarterly