Is Surrogacy Exploitation or Opportunity?

Over the last twenty years, the practice of surrogacy has slowly become more socially accepted, and even welcomed.This was found  in the course of a survey, conducted by Meetville.com (dating app to find the right person) from 3/15/14 to 8/21/14.

The following question was posed: “What is your attitude towards surrogacy: positive or negative?” The results show that 72% of respondents support surrogate motherhood, the remaining 28% are against it.

The total number of participants was 70,495. From the USA - 51%, from Canada - 4%, from Britain - 12%, from Australia - 6% and from other countries - 27%.

Professor Olga van den Akker, from the Department of Psychology, Middlesex University, UK, thinks attitudes towards the idea of surrogate mothers are improving. Supporters are usually parents themselves; they value parenthood and want others to have the same opportunities. “While the negative feelings are held by that part of the population that is usually not involved with surrogacy and are likely to be influenced by reports of stigma associated with the practice.”

Men and women were equally represented on both sides of the question, 76% of males approve, 79% - disapprove; and accordingly, 24% of females support surrogacy, 21% - oppose.

Alex Cusper, Meetville service analyst, explains that “Historically, it has always been important for a man to have children.” He also believes the results may be due to the contribution of same-sex couples, to whom surrogacy is available. “Society as a whole is becoming more familiar with “alternative” ways to have a family,” says Alex.

Meetville, a leading mobile dating service, regularly conducts research among its users. Millions of people from the U.S., Canada, Britain and Australia answer hundreds of questions every month. You can find the results of the poll here. If you are interested in research on a particular topic, please contact us. Any reprint of the material should be followed by clickable links to the survey.