The recent social media obsession over the two senior executives at a data firm caught cheating on their spouses at a Coldplay concert may have a more straightforward explanation than just the comedic unfolding of their appearance on the big screen. According to a recent Gallup poll, married men and women having affairs is the behavior listed as the least morally acceptable. Almost nine out of ten (89%) labeled adultery as “morally unacceptable.”
The Gallup poll also reveals adultery to be among the few behaviors with relative bipartisan agreement, with 4% of Republicans and 11% of Democrats finding it morally unacceptable. Only human cloning and medical tests on animals have more agreement between the two major U.S. political parties, with only a 4% differentiation in opinions on those subjects.
Behaviors that a majority of respondents view as morally acceptable include birth control (90%), divorce (75%), sex between unmarried men and women (68%), having a baby outside of marriage (67%), and gay or lesbian relations (64%).
Abortion and gender transition are the two most divisive behaviors on the list. While almost half (49%) of respondents view abortion as morally acceptable, that rate is 78% for Democrats but only 20% for Republicans. When asked if it is ethically acceptable to “change one’s gender,” 71% of Democrats and only 9% of Republicans answered “yes.”
There is also a significant partisan divide in views about the death penalty, with 41% of Democrats and 72% of Republicans supporting it.
Gallup’s study also found that while there are differences between generations on the moral acceptability of certain behaviors, those gaps aren’t as pronounced as they are with party differences.
The survey is part of the Gallup Poll Social Series. More information on the survey’s results can be found here.
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