Value (ethics)
In 1992, a philosopher named Stanley Riukas published an article titled Inherent and Instrumental Values in Ethics. He argued that some objects are both good in themselves and also good for getting other things that are good. Understanding science serves as his example of such a dual-purpose value. It is worthwhile in its own right while simultaneously acting as a means to achieve other goods. This distinction between intrinsic and instrumental value forms the bedrock of normative ethics. An instrumentally valuable thing is worth having only as a path toward something else. A radio holds value because it allows you to hear music. An intrinsically valuable thing is worth for itself alone. It does not serve as a tool for another end. Philosophers debate whether values like altruism are intrinsic or if traits like acquisitiveness should be classified as vices rather than virtues. The field of axiology groups ethical value under philosophy. Anthropology, behavioral economics, business ethics, moral philosophy, political sciences, social psychology, sociology, and theology all contribute to this study. Ludwig Wittgenstein expressed pessimism about clarifying absolute values. He stated that we can speak endlessly about life and its meaning, but these remain expressions from the mind rather than facts from the heart or will.
S. H. Schwartz conducted empirical research with colleagues to investigate universal human values. His model defines values as conceptions of the desirable that influence how people select actions and evaluate events. Schwartz hypothesized that universal values relate to three types of human need: biological needs, social coordination needs, and group welfare survival needs. Surveys data allowed him to group values into growth versus protection categories and personal versus social focus. Ten universal values populate his framework including self-direction, stimulation, hedonism, achievement, power, security, conformity, tradition, humility, benevolence, and universalism. Research shows men value achievement, self-direction, hedonism, and stimulation more than women do. Women tend to value benevolence, universality, and tradition higher. Personality traits using the big five measure correlate strongly with Schwartz's constructs. Openness correlates with openness-to-change values while agreeableness links to self-transcendence. Conscientiousness aligns with achievement, conformity, and security. Migrants change their values when moving to a new country yet maintain stable preference orders. Motherhood causes women to shift values toward stability and away from openness-to-change. Fathers do not show this same shift. The Inglehart-Welzel cultural map displays global cultural values along two dimensions. Traditional versus secular-rational values reflect the transition from religious understanding to science dominance. Survival values versus self-expression values represent the move from industrial society to post-industrial society.
Scott Atran and Ángel Gómez directed experimental studies among combatants on the ISIS front line in Iraq. They also studied ordinary citizens in Western Europe to understand commitment to sacred values. Their research suggests devotion motivates actors to make costly sacrifices including willingness to fight and die. Devoted individuals show readiness to forsake close kin and comrades if necessary for those values. Jonathan Baron and Mark Spranca argue protected values arise from norms described in deontological ethics theories. Immanuel Kant often appears in this context regarding such ethical frameworks. Protected values are one that an individual is unwilling to trade off regardless of potential benefits. Some people refuse to kill another person even if it saves many others. Trading off two competing protected values like killing a person versus defending family creates tragic trade-offs. These values play a role in protracted conflicts such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They hinder businesslike utilitarian negotiations by preventing utility maximization across individuals. From a utilitarian perspective, protected values act as biases when they stop maximum benefit generation. Most people can imagine scenarios where trading their most precious values becomes necessary yet resist doing so.
Parents in hunter-gatherer societies teach babies to use sharp tools including knives before their first birthdays. Italian parents value social emotional abilities and having an even temperament. Spanish parents want their children to be sociable. Swedish parents prioritize security and happiness while Dutch parents value independence long attention spans and predictable schedules. American parents stand out for strongly valuing intellectual ability especially in narrow book learning senses. The Kipsigis people of Kenya value children who employ intelligence responsibly and helpfully calling this quality ngom. Luos of Kenya value education and pride which they call nyadhi. Cultural maps show how threats influence tightness levels. A history of natural disasters high population density or vulnerability to infectious diseases correlates with greater cultural tightness. Tight cultures enforce stricter disciplinary measures for norm violations while loose cultures tolerate deviant behavior more freely. Regality theory finds war and collective dangers profoundly influence individual psychology and social structure. Dangerous environments lead to hierarchical authoritarian and warlike cultures whereas safe peaceful environments foster egalitarian tolerant cultures. Values generally receive through cultural means like diffusion transmission or socialization from parents to children. Evolutionary psychology studies support findings that environmental pressures shape these developmental pathways.
Hacker Violaine wrote Building Medias Industry while promoting a community of values in globalization on page 64-74 of Politické Védy-Journal of Political Science in 2011. She noted EU policies based on cultural exception juxtapose with liberal policy of cultural specificity in English-speaking countries. International law traditionally treats films as property and television program content as services. This causes failures in international negotiations when interventionist policies oppose Anglo-Saxon liberal positions. Ethonomics examines and compares value systems rigorously to understand politics and motivations fully. An example conflict pits individualism against collectivism. Individuals may act freely unless their actions harm others interfere with freedom or disrupt societal functions agreed upon by majority. A society exists to benefit lives of its members through functions agreed to by the majority. Society requires contributions from members to access benefits provided by the system. Failure to contribute could deny those benefits though hardship situations might alter contribution levels. Societies restrict behavior only for performing designated functions agreed to by the majority. Abrogating rights occurs if members fail to uphold aforementioned values. Members take part in culture even if personal values do not entirely agree with normative sanctions. Groups carry out ways to encourage conformity or stigmatize non-conforming behavior including imprisonment for conflicts with state-established laws.
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Common questions
What is the difference between intrinsic and instrumental value according to Stanley Riukas?
Stanley Riukas defines intrinsic value as worth for itself alone without serving another end. He describes instrumental value as worth only as a path toward something else like a radio allowing you to hear music.
Who conducted empirical research on universal human values in 1992 and what did they find?
S. H. Schwartz conducted empirical research with colleagues to investigate universal human values. His model groups ten universal values into growth versus protection categories and personal versus social focus based on biological needs and group welfare survival needs.
When did the UK pass the Public Services Social Value Act 2012 and what does it require?
The UK passed the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 requiring public bodies to consider social environmental and economic well-being in procurement. This law mandates that government contracts secure comparable benefits through frameworks like The Social Value Model published by the Cabinet Office on the 24th of September 2020.
How do cultural differences affect parenting values across different countries?
Italian parents value social emotional abilities while Spanish parents want their children to be sociable. Swedish parents prioritize security and happiness whereas Dutch parents value independence long attention spans and predictable schedules. American parents stand out for strongly valuing intellectual ability especially in narrow book learning senses.
What are protected values according to Jonathan Baron and Mark Spranca and how do they function?
Jonathan Baron and Mark Spranca argue protected values arise from norms described in deontological ethics theories such as Immanuel Kant's ethical frameworks. These values are one that an individual is unwilling to trade off regardless of potential benefits even if saving many others requires killing another person.