Adam Mastroianni and Daniel Gilbert conducted a study to examine the perception of moral decline in society. They analyzed decades of survey data and found that people worldwide have perceived a general moral decline for the past 70 years. However, they also discovered that individuals' evaluations of their contemporaries' mortality remained unchanged. This led them to conclude that the perception of moral decline is an illusion.

The researchers analyzed surveys conducted in the United States and 59 other countries. The majority of participants in these surveys reported that morality had declined. In their surveys conducted in 2020, US participants believed that people were less kind, honest, friendly, and reasonable compared to previous times.

To further investigate, the researchers examined surveys that asked individuals to assess the current state of their morality and that of their contemporaries. They found that people's assessments of their peers' morality have not changed. This suggests that the perception of moral decline is either incorrect or difficult to support with evidence.

The study's robust data, including responses from millions of archival data points and well-powered experiments, received praise from ethics researcher Melissa Wheeler. The widespread perception of declining morality surprised psychologist Liane Young, who noted that this pessimism seems to be independent of intergroup bias.

The authors speculate that factors such as little memory and the tendency for negative memories to fade faster than positive ones contribute to the illusion of moral decline. They highlight this perception's potential societal and political consequences, as it could influence voting choices and priorities for government action.

The challenge lies in getting people to recognize and accept that they hold this illusion, which is widespread and deeply ingrained.

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