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Survey Reports
November 18, 2003
Religious Beliefs Underpin Opposition to Homosexuality
Questionnaire
PEW RESEARCH CENTER FOR THE PEOPLE & THE PRESS
AND PEW FORUM ON RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE
OCTOBER 2003 NEWS INTEREST INDEX/HOMOSEXUALITY STUDY
FINAL TOPLINE
October 15 - 19, 2003
N=1515
ON FORM ONE Q.17 PRECEDES Q.18 -- ON FORM TWO, Q.18 PRECEDES Q.17
Q.17 Do you strongly favor, favor, oppose, or strongly oppose allowing gays and lesbians to
marry legally?
Mid-July March June October 2003 Experiment
2003 2001 1996 Form One Form Two
9 Strongly favor 10 8 6 9 8
23 Favor 28 27 21 21 25
24 Oppose 23 23 24 25 23
35 Strongly oppose 30 34 41 33 38
9 Don't know/Refused 9 8 8 12 6
100 100 100 100 100 100
(N=735) (N=780)
ON FORM ONE Q.17 PRECEDES Q.18 -- ON FORM TWO, Q.18 PRECEDES Q.17
Q.18 Do you strongly favor, favor, oppose, or strongly oppose allowing gay and lesbian couples
to enter into legal agreements with each other that would give them many of the same rights
as married couples?
October 2003 Experiment
Form One Form Two
13 Strongly favor 14 12
28 Favor 31 25
21 Oppose 20 21
30 Strongly oppose 27 34
8 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) 8 8
100 100 100
(N=735) (N=780)
Q.17 Do you strongly favor, favor, oppose, or strongly oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry
legally?
IF OPPOSE GAY MARRIAGE (3,4 IN Q.17), ASK:
Q.19 Should the U.S. Constitution be amended to ban gay marriage, or is it enough to prohibit gay
marriage by law without changing the Constitution?
32 Favor gay and lesbian marriage
59 Oppose gay and lesbian marriage
10 Amend the Constitution
42 Enough to prohibit by law
7 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
9 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
100
ASK ALL:
On a different subject
RELIG What is your religious preference Protestant, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Mormon, or
an orthodox church such as the Greek or Russian Orthodox Church?
Protestant (INCLUDE: Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopalian,
59 Pentecostal, Jehovah's Witness, Church of Christ, etc.)
22 Roman Catholic
2 Jewish
1 Mormon (include Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints)
1 Orthodox Church (Greek or Russian)
1 Islam/Muslim
2 Other religion (SPECIFY)
8 No religion, not a believer, atheist, agnostic
4 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
100
IF RELIG = 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9 ASK [N=1347]:
BORN Would you describe yourself as a "born again" or evangelical Christian, or not?
43 Yes, would
51 No, would not
6 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
100
ASK ALL:
ATTEND Aside from weddings and funerals how often do you attend religious services... more than
once a week, once a week, once or twice a month, a few times a year, seldom, or never?
Mid-
July March March Mid-Nov March Sept June June
2003 2003 2002 2001 2001 2000 1997 1996
15 More than once a week 16 15 15 16 17 17 12 14
25 Once a week 27 24 25 26 26 28 26 25
15 Once or twice a month 15 15 17 14 17 16 17 17
19 A few times a year 18 21 18 17 17 17 20 21
16 Seldom 14 15 15 16 15 13 15 13
9 Never 10 9 9 10 7 8 10 9
1 Don't know/Refused * 1 1 1 1 1 * 1
100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
Q.27 How important would you say religion is in your own life... very important, fairly important,
or not very important?
Very Fairly Not very Don't know/
Important Important Important Refused
October, 2003 62 24 13 1=100
Mid-July, 2003 61 24 14 1=100
December, 2002 60 27 12 1=100
March, 2002 63 24 12 1=100
Mid-November, 2001 61 24 14 1=100
March, 2001 64 23 12 1=100
March, 2000 (Gallup) 61 27 12 *=100
June, 1998 (Gallup) 62 25 12 1=100
June, 1996 59 26 15 *=100
March, 1994 (Gallup) 59 29 11 1=100
March, 1988 (Gallup) 54 31 14 1=100
March, 1984 (Gallup) 56 30 13 1=100
April, 1978 (Gallup) 52 32 14 2=100
November, 1965 (Gallup) 70 22 7 1=100
IF R ATTENDS RELIGIOUS SERVICES AT LEAST ONCE OR TWICE A MONTH (ATTEND=1,2,3):
Q.28 As I read a list of issues, please tell me whether or not the clergy at your place of worship
speaks out on this issue... First, (READ AND RANDOMIZE; OBSERVE FORM SPLITS)
Yes No DK
a.F1 Abortion 63 35 2=100 (N=429)
June, 1996 60 39 1=100
b.F1 Prayer in public schools 58 39 3=100 (N=429)
June, 1996 56 41 3=100
c.F2 The situation in Iraq 53 45 2=100 (N=419)
March, 2003 57 41 2=100
d.F2 The death penalty 28 69 3=100 (N=419)
June, 1996 27 70 3=100
e.F1 Issues related to homosexuality 55 44 1=100 (N=429)
f.F2 Laws regarding homosexuals 41 57 2=100 (N=419)
June, 1996 36 62 2=100
g. Candidates and elections 26 72 2=100 (N=848)
June, 1996 21 77 2=100
h. The recent removal of a monument
of the Ten Commandments from an
Alabama courthouse 40 57 3=100 (N=848)
IF YES (1 IN Q.28eF1 or Q.28fF2) [N=413]:
Q.29 When your clergy has spoken about homosexuality, do they say it is something that should be
ACCEPTED, something that should be DISCOURAGED, or don't they take a position on the issue?
4 Accepted
76 Discouraged
16 No position
2 Other / Multiple positions [VOL.]
2 Don't know/Refused [VOL.]
100
ASK ALL:
Now thinking generally about homosexuality in America
Q.30 Would you say your overall opinion of [READ, ROTATE] is very favorable, mostly favorable,
mostly unfavorable or very unfavorable?
Very Mostly Mostly Very Don't Know/
Favorable Favorable Unfavorable Unfavorable Refused
a. Gay men 8 30 21 29 12=100
b. Lesbian women 9 30 22 26 13=100
Q.31 Do you think more acceptance of gays and lesbians would be a good thing or a bad thing for
the country or that it would not make much difference either way?
Kaiser Family
Foundation
2000
23 Good for country 29
31 Bad for country 23
42 Wouldn't make much difference 44
4 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) 3
100 99
Q.32 In your opinion when a person is homosexual is it...
L.A. Times
Dec 1985
30 Something that people are born with, Or 20
Is it something that develops because
14 of the way people are brought up, Or 22
42 Is it just the way that some people prefer to live? 42
14 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) 16
100 100
Q.33 Do you think a gay or lesbian person's sexual orientation can be changed or cannot be changed?
42 Can be changed
42 Cannot be changed
16 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
100
ASK FORM 1 ONLY [N=735]:
Q.34F1 There is a lot more discussion about homosexuality these days. Who is the first homosexual
person that comes to your mind? Just the first person that you can think of.
[OPEN END, ENTER FIRST PERSON LISTED ONLY. IF NO GENDER OFFERED I.E. "My cousin" OR "My
neighbor" PROBE TO IDENTIFY GENDER "Is this neighbor a man or a woman"]
50 NET: Male
23 Male friend / coworker / acquaintance / neighbor
21 Male public figure [SPECIFY]
6 Male relative
23 NET: Female
14 Female public figure [SPECIFY]
7 Female friend / coworker / acquaintance / neighbor
2 Female relative
1 Myself/My partner/significant other
24 Can't think of anyone
2 Refused
100
39 NET: Personal acquaintance/relative/self
35 NET: Public figure
ASK ALL, UNLESS PUNCH 1,2,4,5,7,8 IN Q.34F1 AUTO-CODE AS 1 "YES" [N=1281]:
Q.35 Do you have a friend, colleague, or family member who is gay?
Mid-
July Aug Aug
2003 2002 1999
60 Yes 45 45 39
38 No 52 53 60
2 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) 3 2 1
100 100 100 100
[Note: This question cannot be trended to earlier surveys because it was
asked as a part of a larger set of questions about homosexuality, which may
have had the effect of reminding people about gays and lesbians with whom they
were familiar. From August 1999 to Mid-July 2003 the question was asked as
part of a list of items and there was only minimal content related to
homosexuality elsewhere in the surveys. Sample size does not add to the full
sample N due to programming error on the first night of interviewing, where
only Form 1 was asked this question.]
ASK ALL:
Thinking more generally
Q.36 I'm going to read you some statements, some of which you will probably agree with, others you
will probably disagree with. The first is [INSERT ITEM, RANDOMIZE], do you completely agree,
somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or completely disagree with this statement.
[INSERT ITEM, RANDOMIZE]
---- AGREE ---- --- DISAGREE ---
Comp- Some- Comp- Some- Mixed DK/
Net letely what Net letely what Opinion Ref.
a. Society should not put ANY restrictions
on sex between consenting adults in the
privacy of their own home 80 61 19 13 8 5 1 5=100
2000 (Kaiser Family Foundation) 88 76 12 10 6 4 * 2=100
b. Gay and lesbian couples can be as good
parents as heterosexual couples 54 30 24 37 26 11 3 6=100
2000 (Kaiser Family Foundation) 56 34 22 39 28 11 1 4=100
c. Allowing gay and lesbian couples to
legally marry would undermine the
traditional American family 56 40 16 39 24 15 2 3=100
2000 (Kaiser Family Foundation) 54 37 17 42 26 16 1 3=100
d. Gay marriage would go against my
religious beliefs 62 50 12 33 23 10 1 4=100
1996 (Newsweek) 67 -- -- 29 -- -- -- 4=100
Q.37 Now thinking about movies, television, and books you see these days Do you think the
entertainment media are including too many gay themes and characters these days, not enough
gay themes and characters, or about the right amount?
Kaiser Family
Foundation
2000
48 Too many 37
3 Not enough 5
40 Right amount 52
9 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) 6
100 100
Q.38 Compared with people in general, are gays and lesbians less likely to have stable, long-term
relationships, or don't you think so?
24 Less likely to have stable, long-term relationships
52 Don't think so
24 Don't know/Refused
100
Q.39 Do most gay men have a better sense of style than most heterosexual men, or don't you
think so?
34 Gay men have a better sense of style
44 Don't think so
22 Don't know/Refused
100
Q.40 Do you think most gays and lesbians are unhappier than most other people, or don't you
think so?
24 Gays and lesbians are unhappier
57 Don't think so
19 Don't know/Refused
100
Q.41 Would you say [READ AND ROTATE]
76 It doesn't bother you to be around homosexuals [or]
20 It makes you uncomfortable to be around homosexuals
4 Don't know/Refused (VOL.)
100
IF OPPOSE GAY MARRIAGE (3,4 IN Q.17), ASK [N=898]:
Q.42 Earlier you said you were opposed to allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally. What would
you say is the MAIN reason you object to allowing gays and lesbians to marry? [OPEN END: USE
PRECODES OR ENTER RESPONSE VERBATIM. INTERVIEWER: PROBE ONCE FOR CLARITY if response is
simply "It's wrong" or "It's bad" or "I just don't agree with it" or similarly vague answers]
28 Morally wrong / A sin / The Bible says
17 Against my religious beliefs
16 Definition of marriage is only for a man and a woman
12 It's just wrong / I just don't agree with it
9 Not natural / Not normal
4 Purpose of marriage is to have children
2 Bad for children
2 Opens the door to other immoral behavior
1 Undermines traditional family
1 They don't have stable, long-term relationships
1 Causes economic/legal problems
3 Other
4 Don't know/Refused
100
ASK ALL:
Q.43 Do you think it is a sin, or not, to engage in homosexual behavior?
IF "IS A SIN" (1 IN Q.43) ASK:
Q.44 In your mind, is homosexual behavior more or less sinful than adultery, or are they both
about the same?
L.A. Times
Aug 1987
55 Is a sin 69
5 More sinful than adultery --
3 Less sinful than adultery --
44 About the same --
3 Don't know/Refused (VOL.) --
33 Is not a sin 21
12 Don't know/Refused 10
100 100
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