Catholics Differ Little From Majority on Stem Cell Funding

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE

PRINCETON, NJ -- The debate over embryonic stem cell research has taken on strong Catholic overtones since last month, when Pope John Paul II sternly cautioned President George W. Bush against authorizing federal funding of the research in the United States. That, added to the pressure Bush faces from Catholics within the United States, leads to the question of how rank and file American Catholics view the issue.

A major finding in Gallup's recent survey on this subject is that a majority of Americans are not following the issue closely, are unaware of the facts involved, and therefore express no opinion on the matter. Catholics, generally, appear to be no different from other Americans in these regards.

According to the July 10-11, 2001 CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, only 41% of Catholic adults in the United States say they are following the debate about government funding of stem cell research "very" or "somewhat" closely, similar to the 37% of non-Catholics who are paying close attention. Thus, when asked whether the government should or should not fund the research (without any description of what the research entails), only 46% of Catholics offer an opinion while 52% respond that they "don't know enough to say." The Catholics who do offer an opinion tend to support the research -- and by a similar margin to non-Catholics nationwide. About a third support the funding (32% of Catholics and 29% of non-Catholics), while about half that number oppose it.

Should the Government Fund Stem Cell Research?

Practicing Catholics More Opposed to Funding

A little less than half of all Catholics tell Gallup they attend church on a weekly or nearly weekly basis. This subgroup of "practicing" Catholics tends to be more attentive, more informed, and more opposed to stem cell research than their non-practicing counterparts. Non-Catholics who have an opinion about stem cell research are in favor of federal funding by a wide margin, 35% to 7%, but the non-Catholics with opinions on the subject are in the minority. By contrast, practicing Catholics expressing an opinion are evenly split at 28%.

Practicing vs. Non-practicing Catholic Attitude Comparison

This gulf in attitudes between practicing and non-practicing Catholics is further seen in answers to a question in which Gallup described the stem cell issue as follows:

A majority of all Catholics, 54%, said they favored embryonic stem cell research as it was described in this question, while 39% opposed it. But among practicing Catholics, only 38% said the government should fund the research while 57% were opposed.

Views of the Catholic Faithful Differ From Devout Protestants

Gallup often finds that religiously devout Americans hold more conservative views on moral issues than do less devout and non-religious Americans. Thus, the gap in attitudes between practicing and non-practicing Catholics is not surprising. However, the influence of the Pope's words on the stem cell issue may be evident in the difference between the views of church-going Catholics and Protestants in the new poll. Catholics who attend church weekly or nearly weekly are more opposed to federal funding of, and are paying more attention to, the stem cell issue than are church-going Protestants.

Stem-Cell Attitude Summary Among Active Catholics and Protestants

Survey Methods

These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 998 adults, 18 years and older, conducted July 10-11, 2001. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

As you may know, the federal government is considering whether to fund certain kinds of medical research known as "stem cell research." How closely have you followed the debate about government funding of stem cell research -- very closely, somewhat closely, not too closely, or not closely at all?

Do you think the federal government should or should not fund this type of research, or don't you know enough to say?

The kind of stem-cell research the government is considering involves human embryos that have been created in medical clinics by fertilizing a woman's egg outside the womb. An embryo may be implanted into a woman's womb to develop into a baby. If an embryo is not implanted into a woman's womb to develop into a baby, it may be destroyed, either by being discarded or by being used for medical research. Some scientists believe this type of medical research could lead to treatments for such diseases as Alzheimer's, diabetes, heart disease and spinal cord injuries. Given this information, do you think the federal government should or should not fund this type of research?

Which comes closest to your view of this kind of stem cell research -- [ROTATED: it is morally wrong and is unnecessary, it is morally wrong, but may be necessary, it is not morally wrong and may be necessary, (or) it is not morally wrong but is unnecessary]?

For each of the following, please tell me if it is -- very important, somewhat important, not too important, or not at all important -- to you personally. How about -- [RANDOM ORDER]?

A. Medical researchers finding cures for diseases such as Alzheimer's, diabetes, heart disease and spinal cord injury

B. Preventing human embryos from being used in medical research

COMBINED RESPONSES FROM A AND B ABOVE

One of the issues involved in this type of research is whether or not the embryos used were developed specifically for stem cell research. Do you think the federal government should or should not allow scientists to fertilize human eggs specifically for the purpose of creating new stem cells?

At least one other country currently allows scientists to create human embryos specifically for stem cell research. How concerned are you that other countries will gain a competitive advantage over the U.S. if the government does not allow U.S. scientists to do the same? Are you -- very concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not at all concerned?

* -- Less than 0.5%