*New* FemQuant Seminar: Exposure to Local Violent Crime and Abortion, Miscarriage, and Stillbirth in Mexico (09/29/26)

Posted: 2026-09-17 12:05:22 ()

Seminar—Exposure to Local Violent Crime and Abortion, Miscarriage, and Stillbirth in Mexico

Tuesday, September 29, 2026 at 8am ET/1pm BST/2pm CEST (Check in your time zone here)

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• Violence and insecurity have substantial consequences for reproductive health, yet little is known about how local violent crime affects reproductive decision-making and well-being during pregnancy. This study focuses on abortion, miscarriage, and stillbirth in Mexico, where the War on Drugs policy has resulted in a dramatic surge in crime. We combine individual-level nationally representative surveys, fetal death certificates, and monthly municipality-level homicide rates in fixed effects models. We find a positive association between local crime and pregnancy outcomes other than live birth, particularly when considering long-term exposure to violence. In turn, local violent crime is negatively associated with the number of registered fetal deaths, which in this context predominantly represent stillbirths. Together, our findings suggest the most fragile pregnancies are miscarried or terminated at higher rates in more crime-affected municipalities, resulting in fewer stillbirths. This work is co-authored with Dr. Mónica Caudillo and Dr. Orsola Torrisi.
• Dr. Signe Svallfors is an Associate Professor in Sociology at Stockholm University and Principal Investigator of the SeRO project, which aims to provide the first systematic account of the consequences of local violent crime on sexual and reproductive health. The project is based on a mixed-methods case study of Mexico and is funded by a Starting Grant from the European Research Council.