Citation

Kemmelmeier M, Wieczorkowska G, Erb HP, Burnstein E. J. Appl. Soc. Psychol. 2002; 32(1): 60-85.

Affiliation

Department of Sociology, Mail Stop 300, Unviersity of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557. markusk@unr.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1559-1816.2002.tb01420.x

PMID

12680373

Abstract

We hypothesized that in individualistic cultures, individualism predicts positive attitudes toward assisted death, whereas authoritarianism is negatively associated with favorable views of this issue. Study 1 confirmed this hypothesis in a Polish sample (n=100). Study 2, using a German sample (n=102), found the predicted relationships for forms of assisted death that involved the individual self-determination of a terminally ill patient. In Study 3 (n=72), we found experimental evidence that priming individualistic aspects of the self-concept results in more favorable views of physician-assisted suicide. Using a representative sample (n=1158), Study 4 found that across the United States, regional levels of individualism are reflected in corresponding patterns of support for assisted suicide. The discussion focuses on assisted suicide as a cultural phenomenon and explores the implications of growing levels of individualism for public opinion and policy on assisted suicide.

Language: en