TY - JOUR PY - 1993// TI - A Contextual Analysis of Catholicism and Abortion Attitudes in Western Europe JO - Sociology of religion A1 - Jelen, Ted G. A1 - O'Donnell, John A1 - Wilcox, Clyde SP - 375 EP - 383 VL - 54 IS - 4 N2 - The effects of Roman Catholicism on attitudes toward abortion in Western Europe are examined at the individual and country levels. At the individual level, Catholicism consistently occasions negative attitudes toward legal abortion. However, the contextual effects of Roman Catholicism run in the opposite direction, meaning that non-Catholics living in predominantly Catholic countries are more likely to approve of legal abortion than their counterparts in nations with Protestant majorities. The implications of these findings for Catholic political activism are discussed.

LA - SN - 1069-4404 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3711780 ID - ref1 ER -