A recent Gallup poll indicates that fewer Americans consider birth control, having a baby outside of marriage, and gambling to be morally acceptable compared to the previous year. The share of respondents who view birth control as morally acceptable has decreased from 90% to 83%, marking the lowest level since 2012. Additionally, the acceptance of having a baby outside of marriage has fallen from 70% in 2022 and 2023 to 58% this year. According to Megan Brenan, a senior editor at Gallup, the shifts in sentiment are largely driven by independents, suggesting a potential movement away from more liberal ideals.
The poll also revealed a decline in the belief that gambling is morally acceptable, coinciding with the rise of prediction markets, which are viewed by many as a form of gambling rather than investing. Across various behaviors, a majority of respondents found eight practices, including sex between teenagers, extramarital affairs, and changing one's gender, to be morally wrong. The results also highlighted a significant partisan divide, with Democrats more likely to find issues like abortion and gender change acceptable, while Republicans showed stronger support for the death penalty and animal testing.
The methodology of the poll involved telephone interviews conducted from May 1 to May 17 with a random sample of 1,001 adults across the U.S., with a margin of error of ±4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
