International Family Planning: How Political and Religious Conservatives Respond and How to Shape Messaging for Successful Advocacy

World Health Popul. 2016;17(1):5-15. doi: 10.12927/whp.2016.25042.

Abstract

As a global health organization committed to advocacy and research, Hope Through Healing Hands directed two national polling projects. The 2016 National Survey of Registered Voters Tracking was a longitudinal study to compare and contrast the results from a 2013 national polling project with the same sampling and questionnaire. The primary finding here was that in 2016, conservatives show a statistically significant shift indicating greater, more positive, beliefs in the correlation of contraceptives and women in developing nations and saving lives, although the rest of the populace (moderates and liberals) remained unchanged. In the Optimized Messaging Study of Political, Religious Conservatives (PRCs), we examined emotionally and cognitively held beliefs and attitudes toward the language of family planning. We found that PRCs resonate best with language that is clear and understandable, such as contraceptives. Moreover, this group bases their opinion on family planning on their own morals and beliefs.