# Determinants of abortion views among reproductive age women in Georgia 2023–2024

## TL;DR

A study in Georgia found that most reproductive-age women support abortion access, but support decreases as pregnancy progresses, with fewer supporting it after 24 weeks.

## Contribution

This study provides new insights into how gestational age influences abortion views among Georgia women, highlighting discrepancies with current state policies.

## Key findings

- 76% of participants supported abortion legality at six weeks, but only 31% at 24 weeks.
- Political conservatives and religiously active individuals were more likely to oppose abortion legality.
- Support for abortion access declines with increasing gestational age, especially after fetal viability.

## Abstract

Abortion is a continually debated legislative issue in the United States. We aimed to assess opinions toward abortion access amongst reproductive age adult women in Georgia, a state where abortion is banned after the detection of embryonic cardiac activity (around 6 weeks).

Participants were enrolled in the cross-sectional Policies and Social Stress (PASS) Study (N = 177). Sociodemographic characteristics, political orientation, religious characteristics, county of residence, and abortion views were assessed using self-reported questionnaires. Regarding abortion views, participants were asked about their opinion on the legality of abortion generally, and at 6, 14, and 24 weeks. We used logistic regression to examine whether sociodemographic factors, political orientation, religious characteristics, and county of residence were associated with odds of thinking abortion should be legal or illegal for each weeks’ gestation.

Most participants (84%) reported supporting the legality of abortion in all or most cases. Though, that support decreased for specific weeks’ gestation (6 Weeks: 76%; 14 Weeks: 60%; 24 Weeks: 31%). Conservatives and moderates had higher odds of thinking abortion should be generally illegal compared to liberals (odds ratio [OR]=10.2, 95% confidence interval [CI]=4.1–27.3). Those who attended religious services more often and those who resided outside of the Atlanta area were more likely to believe abortion should be illegal compared to reference groups (OR=7.2, 95% CI = 3.0–17.9; OR=6.0, 95% CI = 2.5–16.3, respectively). However, the differences between groups attenuated as the weeks of pregnancy increased.

In a sample of reproductive age women in Georgia, we observed that opinions regarding the legality of abortion were nuanced with regards to gestational age. Fewer participants supported abortion access after fetal viability (i.e., around 24 weeks). Further, attitudes differed mostly along political, religious, and geographic lines.

While 76% of adult women in our sample supported abortion access at six weeks of pregnancy, less than one-third supported abortion at 24 weeks of pregnancy. These findings suggest that Georgia’s state policy that limits abortion after six weeks’ gestation does not reflect the views of the women in our sample.