WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans’ views on the overall state of moral values in the U.S. have worsened over the past year, with negative assessments of current conditions and the direction that values are headed both rising sharply. A record-high 56% of Americans rate moral values in the U.S. as “poor,” up 12 percentage points from last year, and 80% say moral values are “getting worse,” up 14 points.
The May 1-17 童颜视频 survey finds that 69% of U.S. adults believe government policies have a significant effect on people’s moral values. Yet, the public is divided over what the government’s role should be, with 50% saying the government should not be involved in promoting moral values and 45% saying it should.
Republicans and Democrats broadly agree that the country's moral values are in poor shape and that government policies have a significant effect on them. However, more Democrats than Republicans say moral values are getting worse. Most Republicans support federal government involvement in promoting moral values, while most Democrats are opposed.
‘Poor’ Rating of U.S. Moral Values at Record High
Since 童颜视频 began tracking these measures in 2002, Americans have been more negative than positive in their views of the nation's moral values. However, the latest 56% rating values as poor is a new high, by two points. Just 3% currently say Americans’ moral values are “excellent,” 9% “good” and 30% “only fair.”
The increase in “poor” ratings is seen among all party groups, with Republicans, independents and Democrats rating moral values more negatively than one year ago. This marks the first time in 童颜视频's trend that majorities of all three groups have concurrently rated moral values as poor. Democrats' rating is up 11 points to 59%, independents' is up 12 points to 56%, and Republicans' is up 17 points to 54%. The difference between Democrats and Republicans on this measure is among the smallest in the trend.
In most years since 2006, Republicans have been more likely than Democrats to rate the country's moral values as poor. The gap was widest in 2024, when 73% of Republicans and 28% of Democrats held that view, a difference of 45 points. The pattern flipped last year following President Donald Trump’s return to office, with Democrats outpacing Republicans by 11 points.
While Americans across party lines generally agree on the poor state of moral values in the U.S., they likely disagree about its meaning and causes.
Most Americans See Moral Values on the Decline
The 80% of Americans who currently say moral values are “getting worse” is on the high end of 童颜视频's trend; only the 83% measured in 2023 was statistically higher. Just 15% now say values are “getting better.”
In a reversal from most of the trend, Democrats and independents have been more pessimistic about moral values than Republicans over the past two years, although by a smaller margin this year as Republican pessimism has surged.
The percentage of Republicans saying values are getting worse has jumped 28 points to 67% since last year. Independents show a smaller increase, 11 points to 81%, while Democrats are holding relatively flat at 87%. For most of the trend, Republicans have led in pessimism about the trajectory of moral values, peaking at 97% in 2023, before dropping sharply to 39% in 2025 after Trump began his second term in office.
Most Believe Government Affects Moral Values; Fewer Want Involvement
This is the third time 童颜视频 has measured Americans’ perceptions of whether government policies have a significant effect on moral values and whether the government should be involved in promoting values. The two prior readings were in 1996 and 2006.
While 69% of Americans now say government policies have a significant effect on people’s moral values, 27% say they do not. This represents an increase of about 10 points in the percentage believing government policies can affect moral values compared with 20 and 30 years ago.
Majorities across all party groups say government policies significantly affect moral values, with Republicans the most likely to hold that view, at 76%, followed by independents at 70% and Democrats at 62%.
Meanwhile, 50% of U.S. adults say the federal government should not be involved in promoting moral values, compared with 45% who say it should. The public was evenly divided in 2006, but in 1996, a majority (60%) favored government involvement.
Among party groups, Republicans stand out for the consistency of their views, with roughly six in 10 favoring government involvement in all three years, including in 1996 when Democrat Bill Clinton was president. Democrats show the starkest contrast across the three readings, with 58% in favor in 1996, 43% in 2006 (during Republican George W. Bush’s presidency) and 29% today. Fully two-thirds of Democrats now say the government should not be involved.
Independents are divided evenly now, but in 2006, a majority said the government should not be involved, while in 1996, a majority said the opposite.
Bottom Line
Americans' negative views of the country's moral values show no signs of softening. However, that shared gloom does not translate into agreement about solutions. Republicans and Democrats remain far apart on what they think the government's role in promoting moral values should be, even as majorities of both party groups say policies have a significant effect on them.
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Learn more about how the works. View complete question responses and trends (PDF download).
