Public attitudes toward life and death.

Abstract

Opinion trends in this country indicate sharp divisions in public sentiment over a number of life-taking actions. While legal abortion and capital punishment clearly head a list, a number of other issues have gained national attention in recent years. The present paper explores the structure of belief systems giving rise to normative conflicts of this kind. Of particular interest is the notion of a "pro-life" or other generic life orientation (e.g., the alleged "right-to-die" orientation of those who favor "mercy killings" in the case of terminally ill patients) as a possible explanation for public attitudes toward specific issues such as suicide and euthanasia. The present analysis assesses the empirical claims associated with such a model. The results offer qualified support for the existence of generic value orientations as revealed by public attitudes toward legal abortion, suicide, euthanasia, and capital punishment.