Development of intraindividual value structures in middle childhood: A multicultural and longitudinal investigation.

OBJECTIVE: We examined changes in value interrelations during middle childhood. In line with the Personal Values Theory, we expected a value system, with individuals similarly valuing related motivations, and setting priorities between conflicting motivations. We hypothesized this system to develop dynamically during middle childhood as children deepen their understanding of their own values. METHOD: Using unfolding analysis, we estimated intraindividual value structure coherence, that is, the extent to which the interrelations among a child's values are similar to the hypothesized interrelations. Cross-Cultural Study 1 (N = 4615, 6-12-year-old children) included children from 12 countries. Cross-Sequential Study 2 (N = 629, 6-10-year-old children at Time 1) included three annual measurements. RESULTS: In Study 1, we found a curvilinear association between age and intraindividual value structure coherence: Children's values were more coherent at ages 9-10 than before or after. Study 2 confirmed this pattern of within-individual development. CONCLUSIONS: We propose that development in coherence with the theoretical value structure offers insight into children's understanding of values as well as changes in value priorities.

Values in families with young children: Insights from two cultural milieus in Germany.

Are children's value priorities different from their parents' generation? We present data from the youngest children's sample that has been included in a comprehensive family study of values so far: Our study is based on self-reported values of 127 six- to eleven-year-old German children (M = 7.89, SD = 1.35) and their mothers and fathers. We further took into account two potentially interacting developmental variables that have been suggested in the literature: (a) family members' gender and (b) cultural milieu (we looked specifically at families with Turkish immigration background and families without immigration background). While values of self-transcendence, self-enhancement and openness to change did not differ significantly between the two generations, children found conservation significantly more important than their parents. This contrasts with findings from previous studies with older participants. We discuss to what extent this effect may be unique to this developmental stage of middle childhood that had not been covered by previous research. Females valued conservation more than males, and conservation was more important in families with as compared to families without Turkish immigration background. There was neither a gender × generation nor a cultural milieu × generation interaction.

Parent-child value similarity in families with young children: The predictive power of prosocial educational goals.

Value transmission from one generation to the next is a key issue in every society, but it is not clear which parents are the most successful in transmitting their values to their children. We propose parents' prosocial educational goals as key predictors of parent-child value similarity. Accordingly, we hypothesized that the more parents wanted their children to endorse values of self-transcendence (helping, supporting, and caring for others) and the less parents wanted their children to endorse the opposing values of self-enhancement (striving for power and achievement), the higher would be parent-child overall value similarity. Findings from two studies of families - Study 1: 261 Swiss families, children aged 7-9 years; Study 2: 157 German families, children aged 6-11 years - confirmed this hypothesis. The effect was even stronger after controlling for values that prevail in the Swiss and German society, respectively. We integrate evidence from this study of values in families with young children with existing findings from studies with adolescent and adult children, and we discuss potential pathways from parents' educational goals to parent-child value similarity.

Brief report: Into the wild? How a film can change adolescents' values.

In adolescence, behavior and attitudes are constantly rethought and value priorities are established. Still, there is hardly any research addressing how values are shaped throughout this sensitive period. We employed an experimental design, testing whether adolescents' values can be influenced by exposure to a film. In our study, 154 German adolescents (80 females, ages 13-15) were randomly assigned to an experimental group that watched excerpts from the film "Into the wild" or to a control group. Value change was assessed in a pre-post-test design with a one-week interval. As hypothesized, values changed in the direction of those displayed by the film's protagonist: Universalism values increased significantly and conformity values decreased significantly as compared to the control group. Our findings suggest that single exposure to a film may initiate value change, indicating that not only major live events, but also everyday experiences significantly affect adolescents' values.

Cross-cultural evidence of value structures and priorities in childhood.

We broaden the developmental focus of the theory of universals in basic human values (Schwartz, 1992, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology) by presenting supportive evidence on children's values from six countries: Germany, Italy, Poland, Bulgaria, the United States, and New Zealand. 3,088 7-11-year-old children completed the Picture-Based Value Survey for Children (PBVS-C, Döring et al., 2010, J. Pers. Assess., 92, 439). Grade 5 children also completed the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ, Schwartz, 2003, A proposal for measuring value orientations across nations. Chapter 7 in the Questionnaire Development Package of the European Social Survey). Findings reveal that the broad value structures, sex differences in value priorities and pan-cultural value hierarchies typical of adults have already taken form at this early age. We discuss the conceptual implications of these findings for the new field of children's basic values by embedding them in the recent developmental literature.

Assessing values at an early age: the Picture-Based Value Survey for Children (PBVS-C).

In this article, we introduce the Picture-Based Value Survey for Children (PBVS-C): a new assessment instrument that was developed within the conceptual framework of Schwartz's (1994) theory of universal human values. In the article, we describe the development of the PBVS-C with a specific focus on children's cognitive-developmental background (Harter, 1999; La Greca, 1990) and first applications. Multidimensional Scaling analyses in 2 samples of 8- to 12-year-old children (N= 267, N= 421, respectively) revealed highly differentiated structural patterns that closely correspond to Schwartz's theory. We discuss these findings and the potentials and limitations of the new instrument with respect to future directions of values research.