Abstract
Introduction
With the recent changes to the composition of the Supreme Court in the USA, speculation that Roe v. Wade may be overturned abounds. Research assessing people’s knowledge and sentiment toward Roe v. Wade is limited. As such, we assessed the relationship between knowledge and sentiment regarding Roe v. Wade and whether the relationship is moderated by political affiliation and abortion identity (e.g., “pro-life,” “pro-choice”).
Method
In 2018, after Justice Brett Kavanaugh was nominated to the Supreme Court, we distributed an online survey to a quota-based sample of English- and Spanish-speaking adults in the USA.
Results
Roe v. Wade knowledge was significantly related to sentiment; higher knowledge was generally associated with greater support for upholding Roe v. Wade. However, both political affiliation and abortion identity moderated this relationship. Specifically, higher baseline knowledge was associated with lower sentiment scores among those identifying as Republican and “pro-life.” Those who identified as neither or both “pro-life” and “pro-choice” and Independents responded similarly to those who identified as pro-choice and Democrats, respectively.
Conclusion
Roe v. Wade knowledge is associated with sentiment; this relationship is moderated by political affiliation and abortion identity. People in subgroups without a clear stance on abortion (e.g., Independents; people who identify as neither or both “pro-life” and “pro-choice”) seem to hold sentiments similar to those more supportive of abortion (e.g., Democrats, “pro-choice”).
Policy Implications
In addition to other data, policymakers should consult comprehensive assessments of constituents’ attitudes toward Roe v. Wade when making decisions about abortion and reproductive health issues.
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Notes
Throughout the paper, we use the terms “pro-choice” and “pro-life” in reference to abortion identity. We recognize that some find these labels problematic. However, these terms are largely recognizable and understood by most people and therefore are appropriate to use when assessing general attitudes about abortion.
We used a measure of bible literalism—the belief that the Bible is the literal word of God—as an assessment of religious beliefs based on previous research (Adamczyk et al., 2020). Additionally, compared with other items assessing religion (e.g., religious denomination), bible literalism better distinguishes between people who may be more devout or conservative in their religious practice, which tends to relate more strongly to abortion attitudes.
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Crawford, B.L., Jozkowski, K.N., Turner, R.C. et al. Examining the Relationship Between Roe v. Wade Knowledge and Sentiment Across Political Party and Abortion Identity. Sex Res Soc Policy 19, 837–848 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00597-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00597-4