Americans' views on morality: Fewer taboos, but values seen as worsening

(The Christian Science Monitor) The Gallup polling organization has been taking America’s moral pulse, and the results are telling, even though they may appear contradictory.

As Frank Newport, Gallup’s editor in chief, said, “We have Americans largely saying that the overall moral tone of our culture is in bad shape and getting worse, even as they increasingly say that formerly taboo behaviors are morally acceptable.”

Seventy-two percent of those surveyed believe the state of moral values in the United States is getting worse, while just 22 percent say it is getting better—a trend that has continued since Gallup began asking this question each year since 2002.