Valores Humanos

Basic Human Values: An Overview
Shalom H. Schwartz The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Basic Human Values: Theory, Methods, and Applications
”The value concept… [is] able to unify the apparently diverse interests of all the sciences concerned with human behavior.” [Rokeach, 1973] A psychologist wrote these words that proclaim the centrality of the value concept. Sociologists [e.g., Williams,1968] and anthropologists [e.g., Kluckhohn, 1951] have echoed similar opinions. These theorists view values as the criteria people use to evaluate actions, people, and events. This paper presents a theory within this tradition. The theory1 identifies ten motivationally distinct value orientations that people in all cultures recognize, and it specifies the dynamics of conflict and congruence amongthese values. It aims to be a unifying theory for the field of human motivation, a way of organizing the different needs, motives, and goals proposed by other theories.

Introduction to the Values Theory
When we think of our values, we think of what is important to us in our lives (e.g., security, independence, wisdom, success, kindness, pleasure). Each of us holds numerous values with varyingdegrees of importance. A particular value may be very important to one person, but unimportant to another. Consensus regarding the most useful way to conceptualize basic values has emerged gradually since the 1950’s. We can summarize the main features of the conception of basic values implicit in the writings of many theorists and researchers2 as follows: • • • • • Values are beliefs. But they arebeliefs tied inextricably to emotion, not objective, cold ideas. Values are a motivational construct. They refer to the desirable goals people strive to attain. Values transcend specific actions and situations. They are abstract goals. The abstract nature of values distinguishes them from concepts like norms and attitudes, which usually refer to specific actions, objects, or situations. Valuesguide the selection or evaluation of actions, policies, people, and events. That is, values serve as standards or criteria. Values are ordered by importance relative to one another. People’s values form an ordered system of value priorities that characterize them as individuals. This hierarchical feature of values also distinguishes them from norms and attitudes.

The Values Theory defines valuesas desirable, trans-situational goals, varying in importance, that serves as guiding principles in people’s lives. The five features above are common to all values. The crucial content aspect that distinguishes among values is the type of motivational
This paper gives only a very brief presentation of the theory and it’s basics. For a more detailed elaboration, you can go to the followingreferences: Schwartz, 1992, 1994, 2005a, 2006. 2 E.g., Allport 1961; Feather, 1995; Inglehart, 1997; Kohn, 1969; Kluckhohn, 1951; Morris, 1956; Rokeach, 1973.
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1 goal they express. In order to coordinate with others in the pursuit of the goals that are important to them, groups and individuals represent these requirements cognitively (linguistically) as specific values about which they communicate.Ten motivationally distinct, broad and basic values are derived from three universal requirements of the human condition: needs of individuals as biological organisms, requisites of coordinated social interaction, and survival and welfare needs of groups. The ten basic values are intended to include all the core values recognized in cultures around the world. These ten values cover the distinctcontent categories found in earlier value theories, in value questionnaires from different cultures, and in religious and philosophical discussions of values. It is possible to classify virtually all the items found in lists of specific values from different cultures, into one of these ten motivationally distinct basic values. Schwartz [Schwartz, 1992, 2005a] details the derivations of the ten...