Predictive Factors of Abortion Attitudes between Whites and Blacks

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of age and race on the attitude towards abortion. Changes between 1977 and 1993 in white and black’s abortion attitude were analyzed using National Opinion Research Center’s General Social Survey data. Attitudes toward abortion were based on six questions that were asked in the survey. An attitude index was constructed from these six items (alpha = 0.85). In general, as the cohorts aged attitudes became slightly less favorable. Whites and males were more pro-abortion than blacks and females. Multi-variate techniques were used to evaluate the determinants of attitudes, trends over time, and patterns of change for cohorts. The frequency of attending religious services was the strongest predictor of White’s abortion attitudes while the place of residence was the strongest predictor of Black’s abortion attitudes in the regression model.