Though many studies address the role of religion in predicting social attitudes over time, none has examined this relationship specifically for euthanasia. Using a large, nationally representative data source, this study seeks to address this void. Our findings indicate that considerable differences exist among religious denominations regarding the legalization of euthanasia. Specifically, we note a liberalizing trend for all included denominations. We also demonstrate substantial differences in the rates of liberalization, particularly in comparison to conservative Protestants. We conclude with an assessment of our findings relative to previous studies on religion and public opinion.
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Notes
Some conservative Protestant groups have issued official statements condemning the practice of euthanasia. The Assemblies of God provide an example: “Our creation in God's image is at the heart of the biblical injunction against murder: ‘Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man’ (Genesis 9:6). By placing his mark upon humankind, God clearly established His own authority over human life and holds accountable those who would usurp it” (“A Biblical Perspective on Assisted Suicide,” 2002:1–2).
See http://www.umc-gbcs.org/about/nurture.php#faithful for an elaboration of the current statement entitled “Faithful Care of the Dying” put forth by the United Methodist Church, and see http://www.gc2000.umc.org/pets/BD96/TEXT/d0065.asp for an elaboration of the UMC's position, “Death with Dignity,” put forth in the Book of Discipline (1996). Both statements appear under “The Nurturing Community” (2004, 2005) in the references.
Given the GSS coding scheme for the LETDIE1 measure, we cannot accurately assess the extent to which respondents who answered “don't know” influenced our findings. All nonresponse for this survey item is coded in the original data set as missing, so that we cannot separate respondents who answered “don't know” from those who refused to answer or were not asked this question.
An anonymous reviewer inquired about the number of Mormons in each survey year. Between 1977 and 2004, there are never more than 32 Mormons in a survey year (1983), and as few as 8 in certain years (1998 and 2002), who answered the LETDIE1 survey item. Given these small numbers, we decided to remove Mormons from our analysis, in order to avoid unstable empirical estimates.
An anonymous reviewer wished to know how our results differed with the “reltrad” coding scheme developed by Steensland et al. (2000). There were several notable differences. For example, the unadjusted effect of “Year” for Black Protestants was not significant, but became so when adjusted for our control variables. Perhaps the most notable difference was evident when we reran the analyses in Model III. Specifically, none of the “Year × First Group” coefficients reached statistical significance, regardless of the choice of reference denomination. This finding held when adjusted for controls as well. Despite these differences, we chose to use the Roof and McKinney (1987) coding method in order to avoid potential multicollinearlity issues, particularly in regard to simultaneously testing the effects of “Black Protestants” and “Black.” Using the Steensland et al. (2000) categories would also mask the liberal Protestant effect present in Table III, Models 3 and 4.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to thank Robert A. Hummer, Christopher G. Ellison, and Daniel Powers for their helpful suggestions on earlier drafts, though we are solely responsible for the contents of this manuscript.
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Moulton, B.E., Hill, T.D. & Burdette, A. Religion and Trends in Euthanasia Attitudes among U.S. Adults, 1977–2004. Sociol Forum 21, 249–272 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11206-006-9015-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11206-006-9015-5