Extending the Cross-Cultural Validity of the Theory of Basic Human Values with a Different Method of Measurement

TLDR

Schwartz’s theory of human values has been validated in cultures beyond its original scope. The study aimed to assess the 10 value constructs using the Portrait Values Questionnaire, a less abstract measurement method. The authors analyzed data from large representative samples in South Africa, Italy, and Ugandan adolescents to examine value structures. The PVQ demonstrated convergent and discriminant validity in Israeli students and, across four samples, predicted expected relationships with background, personality, attitude, and behavioral variables, supporting construct validity.

Abstract

Several studies demonstrate that Schwartz’s (1992) theory of human values is valid in cultures previously beyond its range. We measured the 10 value constructs in the theory with the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ), a new and less abstract method. Analyses in representative samples in South Africa ( n = 3,210) and Italy ( n = 5,867) and in samples of 13- to 14-year-old Ugandan girls ( n = 840) yielded structures of relations among values similar to the theoretical prototype. In an Israeli student sample ( n = 200), the values exhibited convergent and discriminant validity when measured with the PVQ and with the standard value survey. Predicted relations of value priorities with a set of 10 background, personality, attitude, and behavioral variables in the four samples supported the construct validity of the values theory with an alternative method of measurement.