What are values?
- According to Radhakamal Mukherjee, “Values may be defined as socially approved desires and goals that are internalized through the process of conditioning, learning or socialization.”
- According to Allport, “Value is a belief upon which a man acts by preferences.” According to Hill, Values are individual beliefs to which people attach significant worth and by which they organize their life.
Features of Values
- Value is an emotional attitude in the sense that it motivates a person directly or indirectly to act in the most desirable way preferred by him.
- Values are at the core of personality and are a powerful force affecting behaviour.
- Values give direction and firmness to life and bring joy, satisfaction and peace to life.
- Values regulate and guide human behaviour and action in our day to daily life.
- Values involve the processes of thinking, knowing and understanding feelings and action.
- Values are essential constituents of civilization. Our values indicate our character and determine our moral and ethical choices.
- Values shape the behaviour of both individuals as well as of organizations. The behaviour of individuals affects the behaviour of the organization if the individual is a part of an organization.
- Acquisition of values begins at birth. Primarily values are learned at home but in due course, they will change according to their experiences.
- Values changes over time within the same society which are influenced by the changing needs and present situations of the society.
- Many values are relatively stable and enduring and one’s behaviour can be predicted by upheld values.
Sources of values
- Family– Family is the prime and most important source of obtaining values. Every child learns some values from his family since his childhood and retains those values in his mind throughout his life. The ways the parents nurture, educate and raise their child shape his personality and inculcate values in him.
- Society– After family, society also plays a major role in developing the value system of an individual. Every child learns basic manners and discipline from school. Besides schools and colleges, other groups of society such as religious groups, and economic and political groups to which an individual belongs also affect the value system of an individual.
- Personal factors– Personal characteristics like intelligence, ability, appearance and education level of a person determine his value system very strongly. For example, an intelligent and educated person will understand and learn social and work-related values relatively faster than an uneducated person.
- Culture– Cultural factors which influence the value system of an individual include norms, beliefs and other behaviour patterns which are preferred and acceptable by society. These values are often carried in rituals, customs or narratives that are often repeated and highly resistant to change because they are seen as absolute.
- Religion– Religion is comprised of a set of values and traditions which guide the routine behaviour and decision-making of an individual. Religious values help people determine what is good or what is bad.
- Life experiences– Man learns most from his own experiences and sometimes from the experiences of others too. The values which an individual learns from their own experiences of life are relatively long-lasting and difficult to change.
- Role demands– Role demand refers to the behaviour which is associated with the particular position or role profile in an organisation. Every individual play multiple roles in his life. The problem occurs when there is a role conflict. In such cases, individuals quickly learn the value system prevailing in the organisation so that they may survive and progress in the same organisation.
- Constitution– Almost, all the existing constitutions of various countries highlight the values of democracy, equality and world peace. The values enshrined in the Constitution of India have stated in its Preamble are Justice, Liberty, Equality of status and opportunity and Fraternity. Herein, justice occupies the first place, followed by liberty, and equality.
Types of values
Classifying values has always been a complicated task since there is no hard and fast rule to classify values as they are closely interlinked. Some of the important values are as follows.
- Personal Values– It is personal to an individual both in terms of their possession and their use. It is a desire and cherished by the individual irrespective of his social relationship. These values make a person good for himself. Examples are ambition, cleanliness, discipline etc.
- Family Values– Family as a social institution is based on a certain universally defined value system which is nurtured and cultivated within a family system. Mainly, these values come from the lead of the family mostly the father who transfer these values to their children, who further impart these values to the future generation.
- Social Values– It refers to certain behaviours and beliefs that are shared within specific cultures and social groups. These values are good for society and form the basis of the relationship of an individual with other people in society. Examples are courtesy, charity, civic duty etc.
- Moral Values– These values constitute attitudes and behaviour that society considers essential for co-existence, order and general well-being. It enables an individual in making a distinction between right and wrong and good and bad etc. Examples are fairness, justice, human dignity etc.
- Ethical Values– Ethical values are a set of moral principles that apply to a specific group of people, professional field or form of human conduct. These values presuppose moral courage and the power to act according to one’s moral convictions even at the risk of financial, emotional or social security. These relate to our behaviour with our fellow beings. All moral values are also covered under ethical values.
- Spiritual Values– refers to the process of reflecting on non-material dimensions of life and acquiring insights into personal experiences. They affect the individual in his relations with himself and are concerned with the realization of the ‘Self’ and being one with ‘Divinity’. Examples are truth, beauty, goodness etc.
- Cultural Values– Cultural values are the standards of what is acceptable or unacceptable, important or unimportant, right or wrong in society. It gives importance to preserving cultural practices, ceremonies, traditions etc. which might be threatened by the materialistic culture of modern times. Examples are hospitality, social order, tolerance etc.
- Trans-cultural values– Values that are similar in practice among different cultures throughout the whole world. These can be categorized as universal values since these values are followed across cultures.
- Intrinsic Values– They are the ends in themselves, not the means for achieving some other end. In the hierarchy of human values, these values stand at the highest place and are superior to all other values of life. Examples are goodness, beauty, happiness, bliss etc.
- Instrumental Values– These are such values that are useful in deriving some other benefit through them such as economic gain or an increase in status. A subject is said to have instrumental value when it is pursued, not for its own sake but for some ends beyond itself. Examples are education for success in life, political power to do public service etc.
- Aesthetic Values– It seeks to emulate the beauty of the Divine through the arts. Things and activities which give joys of beauty are aesthetic values. Examples are beauty, taste, architecture etc.
- Democratic Values– These values are characterized by respect for individuality, equal treatment to all, ensuring equal social, political and religious rights to all, impartiality and social justice and respect for the democratic institutions.
