Religious Attitudes Towards Gay Rights in 2013

This post looks at religious groups’ views on gay rights and related issues based on newly-released data from the British Social Attitudes 2013 survey. The 2013 survey asked various questions on this topic, some of which were carried in earlier surveys in the BSA series and some of which have not been asked before. The data have been compiled from the BSA’s interactive, online data catalogue – BritSocAt (the full survey dataset will probably not be made available via the UK Data Service for some time). Those interested in reading about the various topics covered in the 2013 survey can access and download chapters and other material from the accompanying microsite – which can be found here. This analysis builds on previous BRIN posts which have used the BSA (and sometimes other social surveys) to analyse religious groups’ attitudes in this area. The previous posts are as follows:

http://www.brin.ac.uk/news/2014/religion-and-social-morality-issues-in-2012/

http://www.brin.ac.uk/news/2012/anglicans-and-attitudes-towards-gay-marriage/

http://www.brin.ac.uk/figures/attitudes-towards-gay-rights/

This post focuses on attitudes on the basis of religious affiliation (or belonging). It uses the BSA’s standard categorisation which is itself derived from a more much more detailed classification of religious belonging. Religious affiliation has five categories: Anglican, Catholic, other Christian, other religion, and no religion.

The first two questions looked at here asked respondents about their views of lesbian women and gay men (asked as part of a broader set of questions concerning different groups in society). This is the first time these questions have been asked in the BSA series. The questions were worded as follows:

People have more positive attitudes towards certain groups in society and more negative attitudes towards others. Please tick one box to show how you feel about each of the following groups in Britain. Lesbian women.

People have more positive attitudes towards certain groups in society and more negative attitudes towards others. Please tick one box on each line to show how you feel about each of the following groups in Britain. Gay men.

Responses are shown in Table 1. Note that some of the response options have been collapsed into broader categories: ‘negative’ includes the responses ‘very negative’ or ‘somewhat negative’ and ‘positive’ comprises the responses ‘somewhat positive’ and ‘very positive’. The pattern of responses shows that, in relation to lesbian women, those with no religion are less likely to have a negative feeling compared to all religious groups. In fact, for each group, the most prevalent view is one of having neither positive nor negative feelings – this view is held by a majority of Anglicans, other Christians and those with no religion. Around a third of those with no religion hold a positive view (33.0%), next highest at around a quarter of Catholics (25.7%). A similar picture is evident from the responses to the question on feelings towards gay men. Again, in every group bar one, holding neither negative nor positive feelings is the most prevalent view. The exception is for adherents of other (non-Christian) religions, amongst whom a majority (56.2%) have negative feelings towards gay men, compared to around a quarter or even lower for the other groups. Those with no religion are again more likely to have positive feelings, at just over a third (35.5%).

Overall, then, within all groups a clear majority either holds negative or neutral feelings towards lesbian women or gay men. The majorities are somewhat smaller amongst those with no religious affiliation (64.0% for lesbian women and 63.0% for gay men).  Within these majorities, however, those holding neutral feelings always outnumber those with negative views. The one exception here is for attitudes towards gay men on the part of those belonging to other religions.

Table 1: Attitudes towards lesbian women and gay men

Source: Compiled by the author from BritSocAt.

Next, Table 2 shows responses to a question asking about same-sex couples and parenting. The wording is as follows:

Please tick one box to show how much you agree or disagree with this statement. A same sex couple are just as capable of being good parents as a man and a woman.

The ‘agree’ category includes those who answered ‘agree strongly’ or ‘agree’ and, similarly, the ‘disagree’ category includes those who responded ‘disagree’ or ‘disagree strongly’. Two questions asking about male and female same-sex couples bringing up children were also asked on the 2012 survey – see here for analysis of opinions by affiliation and religious attendance.

In 2013 respondents were much more likely to agree than disagree with the statement. Agreement was highest for those with no religion (at 65.0%), followed by Catholics (at 57.5%). Around two-fifths of Anglicans and other Christians expressed agreement, which was lowest for adherents of other religions (at just 19.1%). Disagreement was therefore much higher amongst those belonging to other religions, at 69.6%, and lowest amongst those with no religion (at 19.1%). In each group, relatively small proportions opted for a neutral stance – reaching just over a fifth of Anglicans and other Christians and lowest for adherents of other religions (at 11.4%) and those with no religion (15.8%).

Table 2: Attitudes towards parenting

Source: Compiled by the author from BritSocAt.

The BSA 2013 also asked a question about equal opportunities, which was worded as follows (a similar question, albeit slightly different in wording, was asked in the 1994 survey):

Do you think attempts to give equal opportunities to lesbians, gay men and bisexuals have gone too far or not gone far enough?

Major reforms in this area – including civil partnerships, adoption and, most recently, same-sex marriage – have been enacted under recent governments. In Table 3, the category ‘gone too far’ consists of ‘gone much too far’ and ‘gone too far’ responses, while the category ‘not gone far enough’ includes the responses ‘not gone far enough’ and ‘not gone nearly far enough’. It is clear that those with no religion are less likely to perceive that equal opportunities have gone too far, at 23.1%, compared to the religious groups (highest at 55.3% for those belonging to some other religion). Interestingly, Catholics are somewhat less likely to offer this response (30.0%) compared to Anglicans (47.5%) and other Christians (41.2%). The view amongst religious groups that things have gone too far may have been influenced by the divisive debate in 2012 and beyond over the coalition government’s same-sex marriage proposals, which met with strong opposition from religious leaders and organisations, representing both Christian traditions and other faiths. Even so, not too dissimilar proportions of every group – those belonging to non-Christian faiths aside – think the situation is about right (in the region of 40.0%-47.0%). There is some divergence in perceptions of whether things have not gone far enough, albeit it is a minority viewpoint in each case – highest amongst Catholics (18.4%) and those with no religion (27.5%).

Table 3: Attitudes towards equal opportunities

Source: Compiled by the author from BritSocAt.

Respondents were also asked about how they would feel about informal or formal social interaction, based on the following two questions:

How would you feel socialising with someone, for example as part of a sports club or leisure activity, who you knew or thought to be gay, lesbian or bisexual?

How would you feel talking to someone in a formal setting such as in a workplace or in a shop, who you knew or thought to be gay, lesbian or bisexual?

The distribution of responses is shown in Table 4. The responses ‘very comfortable’ and ‘fairly comfortable’ have been combined in the ‘comfortable’ category and, likewise, the ‘uncomfortable’ category includes the responses ‘fairly uncomfortable’ and ‘very uncomfortable’. First, in terms of informal interaction in a sports club or leisure activity, large majorities of respondents in each group report being comfortable with this form of social contact. Such views are highest amongst those with no religion (at 87.2%) and Anglicans (81.4%), and lowest amongst those belonging to non-Christian faiths (66.1%). Across all groups, small proportions report either that they feel to an extent uncomfortable with this type of informal social interaction or that they would not feel either comfortable or uncomfortable. Those from other religions are more likely to say they would feel uncomfortable or to be unsure.

In terms of social interaction in a more formal setting (such as in the workplace or a shop), again large majorities declared they would be comfortable talking to someone who they know is, or who they perceive to be, gay, lesbian or bisexual. As with the previous questions, feeling comfortable is most likely amongst those with no religion (87.2%), followed by Anglicans (at 81.4%). Those belonging to other religions are similarly more likely to report they would feel uncomfortable with more formal social interaction (at 16.9%) or to be unsure (8.2%). Overall, a very similar pattern of results is evident for both questions.

Table 4: Attitudes towards social interaction

Source: Compiled by the author from BritSocAt.

A question, carried in both 2006 and 2013, asked respondents if they personally know anyone who was gay or lesbian (responses are not shown in tabular format here). On each occasion, only a small minority of Christians and those with no religion said they did not know someone who was gay or lesbian. Amongst those with no religion, 18.8% reported they did not know such a person in 2006 (comparable to 19.0% of Catholics) and just 10.6% said this in 2013 (with Catholics again lowest amongst Christian groups, at 15.6%). The exception here on both occasions were those belonging to non-Christian faiths, amongst whom around half in reported that they did not know someone who was gay or lesbian (2006: 53.6%; 2013: 52.1%).

Finally, Table 5 presents the distribution of responses to two other questions asked in the BSA 2013, which were asked in earlier surveys and allow for over time comparison of attitudes. They concern approval of same-sex relations in general – a long-running BSA question since its inception – and acceptance of marriage between same-sex couples. The question wordings are as follows:

About sexual relation between two adults of the same sex. Do you think it is always wrong, almost always wrong, wrong only sometimes, or not wrong at all?

How much do you agree or disagree that … gay or lesbian couples should have the right to marry one another if they want to?

Looking first at approval of sexual relations between same-sex individuals – reporting the proportions who think it is ‘rarely wrong’ or ‘never wrong’ in 1983 (the first BSA survey) and 2013 – it is clear that there has been substantial liberalisation of opinion over time, across all groups. Those with no religion were most likely to offer either of these responses in both years, at 29.2% in 1983 and 81.2% in 2013. Just a small minority of Christians – regardless of tradition or denomination – adopted these views in 1983 (a fifth or lower), but majorities expressed such opinions in 2013 (highest at 65.1% for Catholics). In 2013, those from other religions are much less likely to take a liberal standpoint on this question, with only 26.7% saying such relations are rarely or never wrong (1983 survey data are not reported as this group comprised a very small proportion of the sample).

In terms of support for marriage for same-sex couples (showing the proportions who either agreed or strongly agreed), most groups show an increase in support from 2007 to 2013, albeit the magnitude of the increase varies. Support amongst Anglicans has noticeably risen from 32.0% to 45.6%, while amongst the group with no religion it increased from 59.7% to 69.3%. Positive sentiment has remained the same amongst Catholics and marginally increased amongst other Christians. As in 2007 Catholics (at 56.4%) remain more supportive than other Christians in 2013, but are now less so relative to those with no religion. In both surveys, those belonging to other religions are much less likely to favour a right to marry among same-sex couples, with positive opinion amounting to around a third in 2007 (32.0%) and just a fifth in 2013 (22.5%).

Table 5: Attitudes towards same-sex relations and same-sex marriage

Source: Compiled by the author from BritSocAt.

Summary

Overall, the data presented here from the 2013 BSA survey (as well as based on comparisons with earlier points in time) show some clear differences in view on the basis of religious affiliation. While most groups have become much more approving of same-sex relations in recent decades, show considerable support for same-sex marriage and parenting, and overwhelmingly declare themselves comfortable with informal and formal social interaction with gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals, those with no religion generally stand out as having the most tolerant or liberal stances in this issue area. Amongst those with a religious affiliation, Catholics are sometimes more likely to hold supportive attitudes compared to other Christian groups (such as same-sex parenting and marriage). Also notable are the more socially-conservative views adopted by those belonging to other religions, evident for a number of the questions analysed above. Indeed, those with no religion and those belonging to other (non-Christian) religions are generally furthest apart in their views and feelings towards gay rights and associated issues. Of course, the higher levels of tolerance shown by those with no religious affiliation will partly reflect their disproportionately younger age profile. What is perhaps surprising is that levels of positive appraisal of both gay men and lesbian women are not higher: across all groups – even amongst those with no religion – a clear majority has either negative feelings or feels neutral, although the latter is usually the more preponderant view.