The loss of confidence that Americans have expressed may be rooted in a deeper shift in people’s attitudes toward individualism, which has brought about decreased deference to authority. Indeed, similar patterns are characteristic of most post-modern societies.
美国人所表现出来的信心下降也许植根于人们对个人主义的态度的更深层次的变化。对个人主义的态度的变化导致了对权威的顺从程度有所下降。事实上，类似的过程是大部分后现代社会的特征。