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Religion and Attitudes Toward Physician‐Assisted Suicide and Terminal Palliative Care
Author(s) -
BURDETTE AMY M.,
HILL TERRENCE D.,
MOULTON BENJAMIN E.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal for the scientific study of religion
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.941
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1468-5906
pISSN - 0021-8294
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-5906.2005.00266.x
Subject(s) - church attendance , attendance , palliative care , physician assisted suicide , terminal (telecommunication) , psychology , terminal care , survey data collection , social psychology , medicine , nursing , psychiatry , political science , law , religiosity , telecommunications , statistics , mathematics , computer science
We assess religious differences in attitudes toward physician‐assisted suicide and terminal palliative care, and go further than previous research by attempting to explain these variations. Using data from the 1998 General Social Survey, we fit OLS regression models to estimate the main effects of religious affiliation and indirect effects via religious involvement (church attendance and strength of affiliation). Both conservative and moderate Protestants are generally less accepting of physician‐assisted suicide and terminal palliative care than nonaffiliates. However, both relationships are at least partially explained by church attendance and/or strength of affiliation.