Democrats’ and Republicans’ Support for Women’s and Men’s Bodily Autonomy

Authors

  • Thekla Morgenroth Orcid
    Department of Psychological Sciences, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
  • Laura Schwab-Reese Orcid
    Department of Psychological Sciences, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
  • Amelia Hartley Orcid
    Department of Psychological Sciences, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

Abstract

Bodily autonomy, bodily integrity, and their violations are much-discussed topics in philosophy, law, medicine, and feminist writing, yet social psychology has not paid this issue much attention. Focusing on opposing political parties in a polarized society, our study (N = 407) examined the extent to which Democrats and Republicans value liberty and freedom and their support for a specific type of freedom, namely bodily autonomy of women and men. Liberty and freedom were highly (and equally) valued by Democrats and Republicans in our sample. However, the two groups differed starkly in their support for bodily autonomy. Democrats, compared to Republicans, were much more supportive of women’s bodily autonomy across a wide range of behaviors such as getting drunk, getting a tattoo, and declining sex from one’s spouse. Interestingly, this difference also held for men’s bodily autonomy, although the difference between political groups was larger for women’s bodily autonomy. This difference was driven by behaviors related to women’s reproductive functions, which were not included for men, suggesting that Republicans are particularly opposed to giving women full control over these types of decisions about their bodies. We conclude that even though Republicans often emphasize the importance of freedom and liberty, they show a lack of support for one fundamental freedom: the right to bodily autonomy. By revealing how abstract commitments to liberty diverge from support for bodily autonomy, our findings highlight the importance of psychological insights for understanding ongoing political and moral debates in a highly polarized society.