Prayer frequency emerges as strongest predictor of assisted reproductive technology acceptance
How religious affiliation and religiosity shape attitudes toward medically assisted reproduction in Switzerland. (Schroedter, 2025)
Schroedter, J. H. (2025). How religious affiliation and religiosity shape attitudes toward medically assisted reproduction in Switzerland. Social Inclusion, 13, Article 10597. https://doi.org/10.17645/si.10597
Geographic Region: Switzerland
Research Question: How do different dimensions of religion (affiliation, religious socialization, self-assessed religiosity, and religious practice) relate to attitudes in the Swiss population toward medically assisted reproduction in general and individual MAR treatments?
Design: This cross-sectional survey study used data from the first wave of the Swiss Assisted Reproduction Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), collected from March to August 2023. 20,000 individuals were contacted by letter and invited to complete the survey online or on paper in four languages (German, French, Italian, and English). The response rate was 26%, yielding 5,256 respondents. The final analytical sample included 3,599 respondents aged 18-85 who provided valid responses to nine MAR procedures: artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, sperm donation, egg donation, embryo donation, surrogacy, egg freezing, embryo freezing, and preimplantation genetic testing. Religion was measured through four dimensions: (1) religious affiliation (none, Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, other Christian, Muslim), (2) religious socialization in childhood (none, small part, medium part, big part), (3) self-assessed individual religiosity (not at all to very much), and (4) frequency of prayer in the last 12 months (never, at least once, at least every two months, at least once per week, daily).
Sample: 3,599 Swiss residents aged 18-85. Women were slightly overrepresented at 56%. The average age was 49 years. Most respondents lived in rural areas (44%), followed by smaller towns (31%), large cities (15%), and suburban areas (9%). Educational attainment was relatively high: 23% held university degrees and 4% had basic education. Nine percent of respondents or their partners had previous experience with at least one medically assisted reproductive procedure. Regarding religious affiliation, more than half (55%) reported no religious affiliation, 24% identified as Catholic, 16% as Protestant, 3% as Evangelical, 1% as other Christian, and 1% as Muslim. Religious socialization varied considerably: 18% reported religion played no part in childhood, 37% said it played a small part, 29% a medium part, and 16% a big part. For self-assessed religiosity, 38% described themselves as not religious at all, 29% as not very religious, 27% as somewhat religious, and 6% as very religious. Prayer frequency showed wide variation: 47% never prayed in the last 12 months, 15% prayed at least once, 13% at least every two months, 8% at least once per week, and 16% prayed daily.
Key Findings
Artificial insemination received highest acceptance (mean 3.1 on 0-4 scale), followed by IVF (2.7), sperm donation and egg freezing (both 2.6), egg donation (2.4), embryo freezing (1.8), embryo donation and surrogacy (both 1.7), with preimplantation genetic testing receiving lowest acceptance (1.4).
Procedures without third-party involvement showed slightly higher acceptance (mean 10.3 on 0-16 scale) compared to those with third-party involvement (mean 8.4 on 0-16 scale), though this difference was not statistically significant.
When researchers combined all nine procedures into one summary score (ranging from 0 to 36), the average was 20.2, showing moderate acceptance overall.
All religiously affiliated groups showed significantly lower acceptance than unaffiliated individuals, with Muslims scoring approximately 10 points lower on the summary score, followed by Evangelicals (8.7 points lower), other Christians (5 points lower), Catholics (2.6 points lower), and Protestants (1.9 points lower).
How religious people consider themselves turned out to be one of the strongest influences on their attitudes. Compared to people who said they were not religious at all, those who were “not very religious” scored 1 point lower in acceptance, those who were “somewhat religious” scored 3 points lower, and those who were “very religious” scored 7.4 points lower.
How often people pray was the single strongest religious factor affecting attitudes. Daily prayer was linked to lower acceptance of all nine procedures. Weekly prayer was linked to lower acceptance of six out of nine procedures.
Older people were generally less accepting of assisted reproduction technologies.
People in large cities and suburbs were more accepting than those in smaller towns. People in rural areas were the least accepting.
Education had a strong effect. People with university degrees scored nearly 4 points higher in acceptance than people with vocational training. More education consistently meant more acceptance.
People who had used (or whose partner had used) medically assisted reproductive technology procedures scored 3.9 points higher in acceptance. Personal experience with fertility treatment substantially increased acceptance.
Limitations: Significant overrepresentation of religiously unaffiliated individuals, women, highly educated respondents, and Swiss citizens, while underrepresenting certain groups, including Muslims. The 26% response rate is relatively low and may introduce self-selection bias, potentially overrepresenting more engaged or interested individuals. The timing of data collection (March-August 2023) coincided with ongoing debates over liberalizing Swiss medically assisted reproduction laws, which may have primed certain attitudes.
Applications: Public education campaigns around MAR policy should address religious concerns directly and respectfully rather than dismissing them.
Funding Source: University Research Priority Program “Human Reproduction Reloaded” (H2R) of the University of Zurich, Switzerland.
Lead Author: Julia H. Schroedter is a post-doctoral researcher at the Empirical and Normative Knowledge and Data Centre of the University Research Priority Program “Human Reproduction Reloaded” at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. Her research interests include medically assisted reproduction, Europeanization, partner choice, and marriage patterns. No personal connection to donor conception was disclosed.
Regulatory Context
Switzerland operates under the Federal Act on Medically Assisted Reproduction (FMedG, 2001), which provides a restrictive regulatory framework compared to many European countries.
IVF and ICSI are permitted but limited to couples who are married or in stable partnerships and face medical infertility or significant risk of transmitting serious genetic disorders. Since “marriage for all” came into force in July 2022, female same-sex married couples also have access.
Preimplantation genetic testing has been legal since 2017, but only when there is high likelihood of genetic disease.
Up to twelve embryos may be created and stored, with storage permitted for up to five years.
Embryo donation and surrogacy (both altruistic and commercial) are strictly prohibited.
Sperm donation is permitted but limited to married couples, including married female same-sex couples since 2022.
Egg donation is currently prohibited, but a comprehensive law revision was announced in January 2025. The proposed reform will legalize egg donation and expand access to both sperm and egg donation to unmarried couples.
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