Deep partisan divide on whether greater acceptance of transgender people is good for society

At a time when a rising share of U.S. adults say they know someone who is transgender, there is no public consensus on whether greater social acceptance of transgender people is good or bad for society, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted last July.

The question was asked as part of a broader survey that asked about the public’s views on a wide range of social and political issues, including whether different societal trends in the U.S. are generally good or bad for society.

About four-in-ten U.S. adults (38%) say that greater acceptance of people who are transgender is generally good for our society, while 32% say it is bad and 29% say it is neither good nor bad. There is a stark difference between Republicans and Democrats on this topic, and views also vary among some key demographic groups, including groups within each party.