Park-Morton, Lottie, Relja, Ruffin and Adkins, Victoria (2026) Public knowledge and attitudes towards non‑conventional gestation in the United Kingdom: results from a cross-sectional online survey experiment. Reproductive BioMedicine Online (RBMO). ISSN 1472-6483 (Print), 1472-6491 (Online) (In Press)

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Abstract

Research question: What does the British public know and think about three forms of non-conventional gestation (NCG)—surrogacy, uterus transplantation (UTx), and artificial placentas (AP)—and their variants: traditional surrogacy (TS), gestational surrogacy (GS), and UTx from living (LUTx) versus deceased donors (DUTx)?
Design: A quota-sampled cross-sectional online survey experiment in the United Kingdom recruited 1,646 adults (51% female) via a research panel. Respondents were randomly assigned to surrogacy (n=548), UTx (n=549), or AP (n=549) conditions. Within-subject ratings assessed TS versus GS and LUTx versus DUTx. Subjective knowledge and attitudes were measured before socio-demographic variables. Complete-case data were analysed using ANOVA, correlations, and linear regressions.
Results: The percentage of respondents with positive attitudes varied across surrogacy (85.9%; n=471/548), UTx (82.0%; n=450/549), and AP (64.8%; n=356/549). Variant-specific information reduced support for surrogacy and UTx, although attitudes remained favourable. Differences in support between surrogacy/UTx, TS/GS, and LUTx/DUTx were not significant. Most participants (74.3-82.7%) reported low knowledge of NCGs. Higher subjective knowledge predicted more positive attitudes towards UTx (β=.11), LUTx (β=.13), and AP (β=.38). Age negatively predicted attitudes towards UTx (β=-.20), LUTx (β=-.14), and AP (β=-.22), indicating that younger respondents were more supportive of these newer NCGs, while older age predicted greater support only for TS (β=.11). Religion predicted lower support for surrogacy (β=-.15), TS (β=-.10), and GS (β=-.10). Political orientation predicted higher support for UTx (β=.15), LUTx (β=.10), and DUTx (β=.09). Other demographics had minimal effects.
Conclusions: Public support for NCGs is shaped by the level of detail provided as well as subjective knowledge and socio-demographic factors, although associations vary across NCG forms and variants. Further research should examine information sources and other influences on attitudes.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	surrogacy, uterus transplantation, artificial placentas, assisted reproduction, non-conventional gestation, public attitudes
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) K Law > K Law (General) R Medicine > R Medicine (General)
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences > Centre for Communities and Social Justice Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences > School of Law and Criminology
Last Modified:	25 Sep 2026 11:59
URI:	https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/54448

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