What kind of proof do you have to substantiate the "over all" claim? I have personally found that those who claim to be Christians behave more morally than a heckuva lot of mormons that I have known....and some of the most "morally behaved" folks I have met were Jehovah's Witnesses.
I guess when there is a sect that spends billions of dollars on TV and radio advertising proclaiming its "morality" and has thousands of internet sites doing the same some folks will buy into the outward appearance.
Give us an example of the percentages of "self-proclaimed Christians" vs the "superior moral mormons" that you personally know, along with a description of the location in which you are finding these examples. Thanks.
Personally know? I'm in Illinois. Mormons are about 1% of the population here. The ones I've met are all pretty decent people. I can give you plenty of data showing the "average" Mormon adheres to morality better than the "average" Christian in America. This does not excuse their wacky church doctrines, it simply shows Catholics and Protestants need to practice what they preach. I've met plenty of Catholics and Protestants who could care less what their church teaches. There are a couple of Mormons who defy their church doctrines (Mitt Romney being the most obvious example when he was pro-abortion and pro-gay), but I've met far more Catholics and Protestants who claim to be "good Christians" and support crap like homo marriage.
Do you deny this data?
SEXUAL ATTITUDES. A greater percentage of Latter-day Saints disapprove of premarital sex, extramarital sex, and homosexuality than any other religious group. 58 percent of the Latter-day Saints said that premarital sex is always wrong, compared with 34 percent of Protestants and 25 percent of Catholics. About three-fourths of Protestants and more than two-thirds of Catholics said that extramarital sex and homosexuality are always wrong, compared to 90 percent of Latter-day Saints. (See Teachings About Sexuality home page)
SUBSTANCE USE. LDS doctrine prohibits the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other addictive drugs. Among adults and adolescents, usage rates are considerably lower among Latter-day Saints than among other religious groups. Only 28 percent of adult Latter-day Saints say they drink alcohol, compared with 65 percent of Protestants, 85 percent of Catholics, and 86 percent of Jews. Fourteen percent say they smoke tobacco, compared with 36 percent of Protestants, 38 percent of Catholics, and 28 percent of Jews.
ABORTION. Jews are the most accepting of abortion, while Latter-day Saints are the least accepting. Less than one-fourth of Latter-day Saints favor abortion if the reasons are lack of money, being unmarried, or not desiring the child. The next-closest group is the Catholics, and more than one-third of them favor abortion in the above-stated circumstances. Sixty-seven percent of Latter-day Saints favor abortion if the fetus is deformed, compared with 74 percent of Catholics and 96 percent of Jews. Almost 90 percent of Latter-day Saints favor abortion if the health of the mother is endangered by the pregnancy. This percentage is similar to most other religious groups, although Jews and those with no religion have percentages of 97 and 95, respectively.