Concept of Values, Types, Sources of Value System, Values across
culture
To have an aim or a purpose is to choose between values and persist in one’s choice. This is
true whether it applies to politics or education. Karl Mannheim
A fundamental question for Socrates in the course of his philosophical enquiries was how
should one live one’s life. Since education as distinct from mere instruction or training is at
heart a matter of acquainting young people with what is good, of guiding them towards
worthwhile rather than worthless lives, there is a strong case for saying that Socrates question
in the most important one for education.
To be concerned with education is necessarily to be involved in values. The purpose of
education is varied- to impart knowledge, to inculcate skills, to fit people for work in adult life-
but perhaps the most important of all educational aims is to help young people develop as full
human beings, inclined and equipped to lead the good life rather than the bad. Values aim in
enabling man in actualizing his potential and imply a vision of good life.
Concept and Definitions
The concept of ‘Value’ has had a peculiar history. Few words have been subjected to such a
variety of usage, by economists, philosophers, social scientists and educators at large.
Some who have made use of the concept have given it a precise but idiosyncratic meaning,
others have made ‘value’ and ‘values’ into umbrella terms, vaguely related to some aspect of
human desiring, approval, interest, motivation, preference, aspiration, to a sense of decency,
beauty, worth or goodness. In this daunting situation there can be no confidence that two
authorities who discuss ‘values’ are referring to the same range of phenomenon and while there
have been a number of (mutually conflicting ) attempts to clarify the value domain at the logical
level, no-one, so far has clearly explicated what ‘having values’ in everyday might mean.
The value concept is employed in two distinctively different ways in our day to day
conversation. One often says that a person has a value but also that an object has value. In the
latter case, value is equivalent to the price as well as availability of a particular object. Objects
with higher pieces are considered to be more valuable than those with lower prices. Similarly
if a thing is available less easily, its value tends to go up, example land or certain antique items.
Now, the focus here is on that concept of value which emphasizes on a person having values.
Every known society has a certain set of values. They are adopted by a large number of people
and expressed by them in the shape of their social behaviour. Values of the proper type help the
society in developing and understanding goodness and healthy social relations. Man living in
a society acquires some values which guide and control his behaviour.
According to Kluckhohn (1951) - “A value is a conception, explicit or implicit, distinctive of
an individual or characteristic of a group, of the desirable, which influence the selection from
available modes, means and ends of action.”
Carl Rogers (1969) holds a similar view- “Valuing is the tendency of a person to show
preferences.” Viewing values as preferences only leaves out the conceptual and directional
qualities-all values have cognitive, affective and directional aspects.
Considering this, Raths, Harmin and Suman (1966) are of the opinion that “out of experiences
may come certain general guides to behaviour. These guides tend to give direction to life and
may be called values.”
Inlow (1972) has given a very comprehensive definition of values and states-“ Values simply
stated are the determiners in man that influence his choices in life and to decide his behavour.”
Famous educationist John Dewey (1948) states- “To value means to prize, to esteem, but
secondarily it means to apprise, to estimate, it means act of cherishing something, holding it
dear an act of passing judgment upon the nature and amount of passing judgment.”
Brightman (1978) says-“In the most elementary sense, value means whatever is actually liked,
prized, esteemed, desired approved or enjoyed by anyone at a time.”
The International Encyclopedia of the Social sciences (1968) defines value as a “set of
principles whereby conduct is directed and regulated as a guide for individuals and a social
group.”
Dutt (1986) says that a value is-“An endeavour which satisfies need system, psychological as
well as physiological needs. Almost all human being have the same physiological needs but
differ in their psychological needs, hence differ in their values and styles of life.”
H.M. Johnson- “Values are general standards and may be regarded as higher order norms.”
Michael Haralambos- “A value is a belief that something is good and worthwhile. It defines
what is worth having and worth striving for.”
Peter Worsley-“Values are general conceptions of “the good” ideas about the kind of ends that
people should pursue throughout their lives and throughout the many different activities in
which they engage.”
Thus values are such desires or goals as are approved by the society. They are learned during
the process of socialization and deeply influence the personably of man.
TYPES OF VALUES
Behavioral values
Behavioral values reflect the standards to which you hold yourself and others. To
determine your behavioral values, consider the personality traits that you appreciate
in yourself and others. The aspects you value in yourself and others may provide you
with insight into your behavioral values. Some common behavioral values include:
1. Independence
2. Commitment
3. Consistency
4. Authenticity
5. Honesty
6. Bravery
7. Loyalty
8. Kindness
9. Reliability
10. Spontaneity
11. Compassion
12. Enthusiasm
13. Respect
14. Pragmatism
15. Frugality
When applying for a new position, consider which of your behavioral values appear
most important to hiring managers, and highlight those in your cover letter and
interview. Some of your behavioral values may make you a great employee for the
right company.
Interpersonal values
Interpersonal values reflect how you interact with those around you, whether they be
your friends, family, colleagues or supervisors. Hiring managers may be interested in
your interpersonal values because they indicate the type of role you will take in the
organization and how you might work as part of a team. To determine your
interpersonal values, consider your preferred communication style and how you like
to be treated at work and home. Some common interpersonal values include:
16. Trust
17. Humility
18. Politeness
19. Leadership
20. Recognition
21. Tolerance
22. Openness
23. Diversity
24. Positivity
25. Candor
26. Connectedness
27. Collaboration
28. Generosity
29. Communication
30. Humor
31. Accessibility
Interpersonal values let you know what to expect from others. It might be easier, for
example, to work on a team of people who share your interpersonal values, since it
can boost morale and make work an overall more pleasant experience.
Social values
Social values reflect your beliefs and understanding about how people should be
treated, in and out of the workplace. To determine your social values, consider the
news stories you follow and the social causes you support. You might find that the
global and social values which you consider the most important have a significant
impact on how you interact with people daily. Some common social values include:
32. Responsibility
33. Accountability
34. Environmentalism
35. Equality
36. Diversity
37. Globalism
38. Fairness
39. Objectivity
40. Localism
41. Merit
42. Citizenship
43. Freedom
44. Justice
45. Patriotism
46. Altruism
47. Stewardship
48. Respect
49. Equity
While a company may not ask about your specific social values, you may ask about
theirs to ensure that they align with your own. This is especially true if you think that
working for a company that shares your social values will make a more positive work
environment for you and increase your productivity.
Business Values
Your business values may be the most important type of values to a potential
employer, just as a company's business values might tell you the most about the
type of environment in which you'd be working. To determine your business values,
consider what others admire you for or consider the qualities that you most admire in
your colleagues and supervisors. Often, business values include those
characteristics that you recognize and appreciate in others and try to emulate. Some
common business values include:
50. Innovation
51. Competition
52. Leadership
53. Creativity
54. Passion
55. Growth
56. Resilience
57. Change
58. Improvement
59. Collaboration
60. Excellence
61. Flexibility
62. Transparency
63. Quality
64. Service
65. Ownership
66. Expertise
Business values may not emerge, or even feel important, in other aspects of your life
outside of work. However, business values are among the most important types of
values for job seekers to know and understand. They define your identity as an
employee and usually also define a company's identity and brand.
SOURCES OF VALUES
Values are believed to be hereditary and genetically determined but some of them are driven
by environmental factors which are as follows;
Family – Family is the prime and most important source of obtaining values.
Every child learns some values from his family since his childhood and retains
those values in his mind throughout his life. The ways the parents nurture,
educate and raise their child shape his personality and inculcate values in him.
Society – After family, society also plays a major role developing value system
of an individual. Every child learn basic manners and discipline from the sc hool.
Besides schools and colleges, other groups of society such as religious groups,
economic and political groups to which an individual belongs also affect value
system of an individual.
Personal factors – Personal characteristics like intelligence, ability, appearance
and education level of a person determines his value system very strongly. For
example, an intelligent and educated person will understand and learn the social
and work related values relatively faster than the uneducated person.
Culture – Cultural factors which influence value system of an individual
include norms, beliefs and other behaviour patterns which are preferred and
acceptable by the society. These values are often carried in rituals, customs or
narratives that are often repeated and highly resistant to change because they are
seen as absolute.
Religion – Religion is comprised of set of values and traditions which guide
routine behaviour and decision making of an individual. Religious values help
people determine what is good or what is bad.
Life experiences – Man learns most from his own experiences and sometimes
from experiences of others too. The values which an individual learns from own
experiences of life are relatively long lasting and difficult to change.
Role demands – Role demand refers to the behaviour which is associated with
the particular position or role profile in an organisation. Every individual plays
multiple roles in his life. The problem occurs when there is a role conflict. In
such case, individuals quickly learn the value system prevailing in the
organisation so that they may survive and progress in the same organisation.
Constitution – Almost, all the existing constitutions of various countries
highlight the values of democracy, equality and world peace. The values
enshrined in the Constitution of India are stated in its Preamble are Justice,
Liberty, Equality of status and opportunity and Fraternity. Herein, justice
occupies the first place, followed by liberty, equality.
VALUES ACROSS CULTURE
Power Distance – Power distance is the degree to which people accept uneven
distribution of power in the society and institutions. People with high power
distance tend to accept unequal power distribution. The people with low power
distance relatively prefer equal distribution of power. Low power distance
cultures adopt Democratic way of governance (for e.g. India) and high power
distance cultures adopt autocratic style of governance (for e.g. Gulf countries).
Individualism vs. Collectivism – Individualism refers the degree to which
people value individual goals over the group goals (For e.g. western democracy
– Rights over Duty) whereas in collectivism, individuals give preference to group
goals over individual goals (Duty over Rights). Libertarian states such USA can
be said to more inclined towards individualism (Rawls’ Social contract) whereas
Russia and China can be referred as more inclined to collectivism (Hobbes’
social contract)
Masculinity vs. Femininity – Masculinity represents the degree to which the
culture favours traditional masculine domination over privilege and power (for
e.g. Afghan Taliban) whereas femininity value represents no demarcation
between the roles of males and females (for e.g. Egalitarian societies such as
Canada, New Zealand etc.)
Long term vs. short term orientation – Long term orientation is a national
value which emphasises on future, saving and perseverance (For e.g. Value of
sustainable development) whereas short term orientation emphasises on past
and present.
Indulgence vs. restraint – Indulgence is the degree to which people prefer to
enjoy life, have fun and fulfil natural desires (Materialistic way of life)
whereas restraint is the degree to which gratification of individual’s needs,
desires and behaviour is governed by social norms or spiritual values (Spiritual
way of life).
