Online Pregnancy Tests : A Tangled Web We Weave

Online pregnancy tests sound disturbing on many different levels. Recently popularised by the advent of smartphones and mobile applications, the methodology behind these has actually been in use for many decades.  In short, these tests are designed to calculate the probability of a woman being pregnant, by considering a number of early pregnancy symptoms. The pregnancy confirmation process relies on a number of statistical factors, such as the average length of your menstrual cycle and the date of your last period.

Invasion of Privacy

And there are quite a few questions on that list. The reason some women are not terribly excited by the prospect of a trip to the OB/GYN is due to the inherently intrusion in privacy. For instance, one of the key statistics a doctor requires is the exact date of the specific act of intercourse which, in your opinion, is most likely to result in conception. Now it needn’t be said just how impossible that discussion is going to be, considering the circumstances.

In online pregnancy tests, all the processes are automated and no human intervention is necessary. Rest assured all your answers will be plugged into an algorithm and made anonymous.

Following Tradition

However, there is something to be said for home pregnancy tests and a visit to the doctor. Statistical inference methods are designed to be right in the majority of cases, which means they cannot take special circumstances into account no matter how comprehensive their questions seem to be. And there is a very good chance that you are wondering about it all precisely because you have had an atypical experience. Perhaps you were so stressed you had neglected to take a few pills, and missed your period a week later – the interplay of psychology, physiology, and sheer chance will wreak any spreadsheet.

So take online pregnancy tests with a grain of salt. They are good when it comes to standard cases, but the problem is who would actually believe that their experience is anything but extraordinary?