ISSUE GUIDES: Abortion
The Red Flags section offers guidance on areas of public opinion research where findings may be misleading, unstable, or easily misinterpreted. Public Agenda uses several indicators to judge when survey results should be reported and used cautiously.
Red Flag Statements
| Mixed Feelings | Private vs. Public Morality |
Survey questions about the legality of abortion often draw different responses depending on how questions are worded. This is generally a sign of conflicted feelings on the part of the public. The abortion issue features a number of conflicted and seemingly inconsistent findings. For example, large majorities favor laws to restrict abortions, but nearly two-thirds say the government should not interfere with a woman's access to abortion. And, while most Americans are opposed to overturning the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion during the first three months of pregnancy, many are unsure whether the decision goes too far in making abortion legal.
- Americans are divided in their views on abortion
- Large majorities favor proposed laws to restrict abortions
- Majorities say abortion should be legal in some, but not all, circumstances
- Most Americans say that Roe v. Wade should not be overturned, but are divided over whether the U.S. Supreme Court's ....
- Nearly two-thirds say the government should not interfere with a woman's access to abortion
Tags: Often there is a distinction between what people consider right for them and what they think should be written into law. On the question of abortion, many hesitate to impose their views on others. For example, while more than half say they think abortion is murder, most say the decision rests with a woman and her doctor. And although more than half says they would not consider having an abortion themselves, less than a third favor a complete ban.
- While more than half of Americans consider abortion to be murder, most say the decision rests with a woman and her doctor
- While most Americans say they would not consider abortion an option for themselves or a partner, less than one-third favor...
Public Agenda uses several indicators to judge when survey results should be reported and used cautiously:
- Results change when survey questions are reworded slightly.
- Results change when implications or trade-offs of a policy are pointed out.
- Results may be misleading if reported in isolation or out of context.
- Other research suggests that people have incomplete or inaccurate knowledge in this area.
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