The survey's findings, published in Thursday's issue of Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, shed light on public opinion regarding the conditions under which a pregnancy can be terminated.
Leading the reasons for supporting legal abortion is the threat to a woman's life, with 85.4 percent of respondents advocating for this option, a slight decrease from 92.4 percent in a previous survey conducted in June 2023. Threats to the woman's health were the second most common reason, garnering 72.8 percent support, down from 75.9 percent in the last survey.
Abortion due to severe fetal damage received 71.1 percent approval, showing a significant increase from 65.3 percent in June 2023. Similarly, pregnancies resulting from incest were viewed by 70.1 percent of participants as justifiable grounds for abortion, up from 64.9 percent in the previous survey.
Interestingly, 53.4 percent of those surveyed believed abortion should be permissible when the child's life is in danger, a notable decrease from 65.5 percent in the last survey. Additionally, 61 percent supported abortion in cases of severe fetal defects, excluding Down syndrome, an increase from 56.2 percent previously.
The survey also explored opinions on abortion in cases where the woman is a minor, with 30.7 percent of respondents supporting this, slightly down from 31.1 percent in June 2023. Only 24.7 percent believed abortion should be allowed if a woman simply does not want to have a child, a decrease from 30.9 percent in the previous survey.
Abortion due to a woman's difficult personal situation was justified by 28.4 percent of participants, up from 23 percent, while material hardship as a reason was supported by 29.5 percent, showing a significant rise from 18 percent in the last survey.
The poll, conducted between March 4 and 10 this year, involved 1,000 adult residents of Poland and utilized both telephone (CATI) and Internet (CAWI) interviews.
(jh)
Source: RMF FM, PAP
