In the 1950s, there were big problems with juvenile delinquency. Kids sniffed glue, popped pills, had sex, committed crimes, etc. Wife-beating went on except in those days, a battered woman didn't get much sympathy. There were big problems with alcoholism. Organized crime was much more prevalent then it is today, business owners on Main Street USA often had to pony up protection money to the local mob and the local police were on the take too.
The difference today is that everybody is out in the open with their problems. It is no longer considered shameful to be on welfare or to be a homosexual, for example. Also, kids are not sheltered like they used to be. I was 12 years old before I even knew about sex and when I was 13, I remember being horrified by the movie "Jaws" and it was years before I could swim in the ocean again. My 10-year-old son saw the movie on TV last summer and he thought it was "dumb."