Gallup polls U.S. public on moral issues from birth control to adultery

WASHINGTON, May 30 (UPI) -- While nine out of 10 adults in the United States say birth control is acceptable, only 7 percent believe adultery is okay, a Gallup poll released Friday said.

Gallup asked respondents about 19 moral issues. The poll found majorities ranging from 57 percent (the use of animals for medical tests) to 69 percent (divorce) on many issues, including pre-marital sex, out-of-wedlock birth, homosexual relationships, stem-cell research and the death penalty.

The public is split on doctor-assisted suicide, with only 52 percent finding it acceptable, and abortion, where 42 percent find it acceptable and neither side has a majority.

Gallup found animal cloning, teenage sex and pornography to be largely unacceptable, with between 30 percent and 34 percent of respondents finding them permissible. At the low end of the scale, 19 percent said suicide is acceptable, 14 percent polygamy, 13 percent human cloning and 7 percent adultery.

There have been some changes in recent years. In 2002, only 38 percent accepted homosexuality, and a majority also disapproved of out-of-wedlock births.

Even polygamy is now more acceptable. In 2006, Gallup found only 5 percent willing to accept multiple spouses and said the increase in support could be because TV shows like Big Love have removed some of the stigma.

While Republicans are almost as likely as Democrats to find birth control acceptable, they are more likely to be disapproving of other types of sexual conduct. Only 54 percent find non-marital sex acceptable compared to 77 percent of Democrats, while only 1 percent of Republicans said adultery is acceptable while 13 percent of Democrats do.

Democrats, on the other hand, are more likely to disapprove of the death penalty with only 52 percent saying it is acceptable compared to 73 percent of Republicans.

Gallup interviewed 1,028 adults between May 8 and May 11. The margin of error for the survey is 4 percentage points.