A growing number of Americans are expressing more conservative views on a range of social and moral issues, according to the latest Values and Beliefs Poll released by Gallup on Tuesday.
The survey, conducted May 1–17 among 1,001 adults nationwide, found declining acceptance of several behaviors that Gallup tracks annually, including premarital sex, gambling, pornography, euthanasia and gender transition.
One of the most notable shifts involved childbirth outside marriage. While 67% of Americans considered having children out of wedlock morally acceptable in last year’s survey, that figure dropped to 58% in the latest poll, representing one of the steepest annual declines measured.
Attitudes toward contraception also became less favorable. Although most respondents still regard birth control as morally acceptable, support fell from 90% to 83%, the lowest level Gallup has recorded since it began asking the question.
Views on sexual relationships likewise moved in a more conservative direction. The percentage of Americans who said sex between unmarried men and women is morally acceptable declined from 68% to 65%, while approval of gay and lesbian relationships slipped from 64% to 62%.
Acceptance of sexual activity among teenagers also declined. In the previous survey, 41% of respondents described teen sex as morally acceptable, compared with 35% this year.
Americans also reported lower levels of approval for gambling and pornography. The share of respondents who viewed gambling as morally acceptable fell from 63% to 57%, the lowest reading Gallup has documented, while acceptance of pornography dropped from 35% to 31%.
Support for end-of-life practices involving physician assistance also weakened. The percentage of Americans who regarded doctor-assisted suicide as morally acceptable decreased from 53% to 49%, pushing support below the majority threshold.
Capital punishment reached a new low in public approval. Gallup found that 52% of Americans now consider the death penalty morally acceptable, down from 56% a year ago.
Opinions on stem cell research also became somewhat less favorable. While 63% of respondents viewed the practice as morally acceptable in 2025, that figure declined to 59% in the most recent survey.
The poll recorded a further decline in support for gender transition. Just 38% of Americans described changing one’s gender as morally acceptable, compared with 40% last year, marking the lowest level Gallup has measured.
Views on divorce remained largely unchanged. Acceptance of divorce edged down slightly from 75% to 74%, while approval of extramarital affairs slipped from 8% to 7%.
Attitudes toward abortion showed little movement overall. Forty-nine percent of Americans continued to regard abortion as morally acceptable, unchanged from the previous survey. Meanwhile, the share who considered abortion morally wrong increased modestly from 40% to 41%.
Public opinion on suicide showed little movement from last year, with 21% of Americans viewing it as morally acceptable and 70% considering it morally wrong.
Among all issues surveyed, human cloning was the only one to gain support. The percentage of Americans who viewed cloning humans as morally acceptable rose slightly from 8% to 9%.
