China More Conservative Than US on Abortion, Homosexuality?
While under a secular Communist regime, the people of China are more socially conservative than Americans are on issues like abortion and homosexuality, a poll revealed.
The survey was conducted by Shanghai Jiao Tong University on about 3,500 citizens of the People's Republic of China from 34 cities.
Released on Christmas Day, the survey noted that 68.5 percent of respondents said they considered homosexuality unacceptable.
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Also, as reported by Zhao Wen the Shanghai Daily, nearly 60 percent of respondents held a negative opinion of abortion.
"The survey concluded that while the personal values of Chinese people had changed a lot over the past 30 years, traditional values still played a dominant role," wrote Zhao Wen on Thursday.
"Respondents were asked to grade their acceptance of each topic from one to five points. One point meant the behavior was unacceptable while five points meant it was totally compatible with everyday life."
In June, the Pew Research Global Attitudes Project a notable gap in acceptance of homosexuality between the United States of America and the People's Republic.
According to Pew's findings, 60 percent of American respondents find homosexuality acceptable versus only 21 percent of Chinese respondents.
"There is broad acceptance of homosexuality in North America, the European Union, and much of Latin America," reads the June report.
"However, rejection of homosexuality is equally widespread in predominantly Muslim nations and in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as in parts of Asia and in Russia."
In January, as part of the 40th anniversary of the controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, Pew surveyed Americans' views on abortion.
Pew's Religions & Public Life Project reported that 47 percent of American respondents found abortion morally wrong.
"Nearly half (47%) say it is morally wrong to have an abortion, while just 13% find this morally acceptable; 27% say this is not a moral issue and 9% volunteer that it depends on the situation. These opinions have changed little since 2006," reads the report in part.
Although the recent Chinese study did find more socially conservative views on many issues, the respondents from the two nations appear to hold similar views on divorce.
According to a Gallup poll released in May, 68 percent of Americans believe divorce is morally acceptable, which is slightly less than the 71.5 percent from the recently released Chinese survey.
