The phrase "a general deterioration of" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing a decline or worsening condition in various contexts, such as health, environment, or social issues.
Example: "The report highlighted a general deterioration of public trust in government institutions over the past few years."
Alternatives: "a widespread decline in" or "a significant worsening of".
By 1852 a general deterioration of his nervous system was becoming apparent.
Others say a creeping intrusion of foul language, not only on radio but occasionally on television and in newspapers as well, reflects a general deterioration of standards.
"There is a general deterioration of the Taliban military position," Secretary Powell said in an interview with The New York Times.
Dell, based in Austin, Tex., attributed the cutbacks to a general deterioration of economic conditions and faltering demand for its mainstay, the desktop personal computer.
Like much of Britain, it is suffering from a general deterioration of public services, and the London Underground, the world's oldest subway system (it opened in 1863), is crumbling.
The portfolio he was running — which the bank initially said was a hedge to reduce its exposure to a general deterioration of credit conditions — became one that would benefit from credit conditions improving.
There was a general deterioration in level of perceived social support over time among those who disclosed their NSSI, particularly for those who disclosed their NSSI to friends.
Securitisation has made it easy to shed assets that seem to require too much capital, which has contributed to a general deterioration in the quality of banks' balance-sheets.
Is there really such a difference that the second can be dismissed as the way of the world, while the first is "not mere violation but something more profound," a crime so audacious that "a general deterioration in the valuation of human life, such as was seen in Europe during the first half of the twentieth century, could happen again"?
They could come under the cosh to be more conservative in their ratings, leading to a further general deterioration of corporate credit quality, and thus make debt more expensive.
"Perhaps the more difficult challenge is to capture the broader risks the institution might confront in conditions of a general deterioration in confidence in credit and an erosion in liquidity," Mr. Geithner said in the speech.
