Attitudes of California Registered Nurses About Abortion

Abstract

Objective: To describe attitudes about abortion among registered nurses (RNs) licensed in California and to determine if demographic characteristics were associated with these attitudes.

Design: Cross-sectional, one-time survey.

Setting: Online between 2015 and 2017.

Participants: Nurses with active RN licenses in California (N = 2,500).

Methods: An anonymous survey was sent to a random sample of 2,500 RNs with active California licenses between 2015 and 2017 to assess their personal and professional demographic characteristics and their attitudes toward abortion. Using scores on the Abortion Attitudes Scale, we dichotomized participants into proabortion and antiabortion categories. We used chi-square tests to determine differences based on demographic characteristics.

Results: Data from 504 RNs licensed in California are included in this analysis. Most respondents identified as female (n = 462, 92%), older than 50 years of age (n = 379, 75%), married (n = 364, 72%), White (n = 354, 70%), and Christian (n = 322, 64%). They were more likely to have negative attitudes toward abortion care if they identified as Christian (p < .001) and more positive attitudes if they identified as White (p < .001) independent of identifying as Christian.

Conclusions: Respondents had a complex range of attitudes about abortion. In some cases, these attitudes aligned and/or conflicted with stated religious orientation. This study highlights the demographic characteristics that are associated with the attitudes and beliefs about abortion among RNs licensed in California.

Keywords: abortion; contraception; nurses; sexual and reproductive health.