Graham Llewellyn Grove1,2,3, Ian Hughes4, Melanie Lovell5,6,7, Megan Best3,8. 1. QLD Specialist Palliative Rural Telehealth Service. 2. Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service. 3. University of Sydney. 4. Office of Research and Governance, Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service. 5. Medicine, Northern Clinical School, University of Sydney. 6. HammondCare. 7. Greenwich Hospital. 8. University of Notre Dame, Australia.
Abstract
AIM: To explore whether public support for and opposition to Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide (EPAS) as measured in historic Australian and New Zealand polls has been influenced by the wording of survey questions. METHODS: Australian and New Zealand random-sample post-1995 EPAS poll questions asked of the general public were identified and subjected to content analysis. Individual phrases and words were considered in terms of their favourability towards or unfavourability against EPAS and each poll question was assigned a net favourability score. Variation of support for EPAS based on year, location and favourability of language was analysed by various statistical methods. RESULTS: Mean public support for EPAS in Australia and New Zealand between 1995 and the present was 70.2% with support ranging between 47% and 85%. Support did not vary by location and has remained unchanged over time. However, support was positively associated with increasing levels of favourable wording, accounting for over 20% variation in mean support. Allusions to hopelessness had an especially strong effect on increasing support for EPAS. CONCLUSION: Use of emotive phrases and language is associated with influencing attitudes to EPAS in Australia and New Zealand. Therefore, caution should be exercised when interpreting public support for EPAS based on individual polls. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
AIM: To explore whether public support for and opposition to Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide (EPAS) as measured in historic Australian and New Zealand polls has been influenced by the wording of survey questions. METHODS: Australian and New Zealand random-sample post-1995 EPAS poll questions asked of the general public were identified and subjected to content analysis. Individual phrases and words were considered in terms of their favourability towards or unfavourability against EPAS and each poll question was assigned a net favourability score. Variation of support for EPAS based on year, location and favourability of language was analysed by various statistical methods. RESULTS: Mean public support for EPAS in Australia and New Zealand between 1995 and the present was 70.2% with support ranging between 47% and 85%. Support did not vary by location and has remained unchanged over time. However, support was positively associated with increasing levels of favourable wording, accounting for over 20% variation in mean support. Allusions to hopelessness had an especially strong effect on increasing support for EPAS. CONCLUSION: Use of emotive phrases and language is associated with influencing attitudes to EPAS in Australia and New Zealand. Therefore, caution should be exercised when interpreting public support for EPAS based on individual polls. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Entities:
Keywords:
Attitude; Euthanasia, Active; Language; Suicide, Assisted; Surveys and Questionnaires