COLLEGE-STUDENTS ATTITUDES TOWARD ABORTION

Attitudes toward abortion have not been extensively studied by psychologists. This study related college students' attitudes toward abortion to their sex and attitudes toward women's rights and roles. Feminists (regardless of gender) were expected to be more favorable toward abortion than nonfeminists, and women who were feminists were expected to be the most approving. Neither hypothesis was supported. The failure to find significant effects for feminism may be due to a relatively high level of feminism among the male subjects. The scores on abortion attitudes were not different from those of physicians and similar to those in another study of college students. Psychology majors were more accepting of abortion than students in other disciplines, an effect that may represent self-selection in psychology majors or disciplinary socialization. Suggestions for future research and implications for clinical practice are discussed.