Carolyn S. Carlson

Who is Confused on Abortion? Carolyn S. Carlson

Measuring public opinion on abortion is an ongoing concern for pollsters, political scientists, journalists and advocates, mainly because the public does not always exhibit fixed attitudes on such topics. Most citizens express a centrist viewpoint between the pro choice and pro life extremes. These include a small group whose answers to abortion questions are so in­consistent that they present an inaccurate measure of public opinion on this important issue. This book probes just who these inconsistent respondents are, how they are inconsistent and what characteristics they share. It finds, for instance, that politically conservative regular church-goers can be just as inconsistent on abortion as the non-religious, non-political, low-educated non-church goers, especially if they are basically pro choice. This book is addressed to public opinion researchers, as well as politicians, political scientists, journalists and advocates on either side of the abortion issue.