Values scale

In addition, they assess the importance of each value in people's lives and how the individual strives toward fulfillment through work and other life roles, such as parenting.

The original values scale measured the following values, listed in alphabetical order: ability utilization, achievement, advancement, aesthetics, altruism, authority, autonomy, creativity, cultural identity, economic rewards, economic security, life style, personal development, physical activity, physical prowess, prestige, risk, social interaction, social relations, variety, and working conditions.

Dr. Eda Gurel-Atay published an article in the Journal of Advertising Research in March 2010, providing a glimpse into how social values have changed between 1976 and 2007.

[5] According to social psychologist Milton Rokeach, human values are defined as “core conceptions of the desirable within every individual and society.

They serve as standards or criteria to guide not only action but also judgment, choice, attitude, evaluation, argument, exhortation, rationalization, and…attribution of causality.”[6] In his 1973 publication, Rokeach also stated that the consequences of human values would be manifested in all phenomena that social scientists might consider worth investigating.

In order for any type of research to be successful, regardless of the field of study, people's underlying values needed to be understood.

Terminal values are beliefs or conceptions about ultimate goals of existence that are worth surviving for, such as happiness, self-respect, and freedom.

Gordon Allport, a student of American philosopher and psychologist Eduard Spranger,[12] believed that an individual's philosophy is founded upon the values or basic convictions that a person holds about what is and is not important in life.

[4] By 1980, the values scale had fallen into disuse due to its archaic content, lack of religious inclusiveness, and dated language.

The three different types of values, intrinsic, extrinsic, and systematic, can be combined positively or negatively with one another in 18 logically possible ways.

Means-end chain analyses often find that consumers select products with attributes that deliver consequences, which in turn contribute to value fulfillment.

[5] Clawson and Vinson (1978) further elaborated on this idea by explaining how values are one of the most powerful explanations of, and influences on, consumer behavior.

[7] Values scales are helpful in understanding several aspects of consumption areas and consumer behavior, including leisure, media, and gift giving.

People who endorse certain values more highly than others engage in certain activities, prefer certain programs or magazines, or give gifts differently from others.