Is Psychological Value a Missing Building Block in Societal Sustainability?

João Carvalho,Célio Sousa

doi:10.3390/su10124550

Abstract

Value creation is a constitutive and defining aspect in organizational ventures. This is unsurprising, as it is required for organizational survival and sustainability. Approaches based on the creation of economic, social and ecological value draw attention to the multiple and multiplicative nature of value creation. While academia still acknowledges the conceptual value of such approaches, a framework that add a psychological dimension to the established Elkington’s triple-bottom line model seems particularly refreshing and inspiring. Relying on the concepts of psychological value and sustainability, this paper presents the outcomes of an exploratory empirical study involving managers and users/customers of four organizations in the social sector in Portugal. This study discusses how managers and users/customers of these organizations make sense of and value psychological value. The outcomes of the interviews with both managers and users/customers shed light into the unexplored, hazy and neglected analytical links that may exist between psychological value and broader perspectives on sustainability. We conclude that this novel approach enhances our understanding about the impact that a social product can have in societal sustainability.

Highlights

An economic, social and ecological perspective on value—the so called ‘triple-bottom line’—is needed if we are to have a better understanding of value creation in modern societies [1]
Relying on the concepts of psychological value and sustainability, this paper presents the outcomes of an empirical-based exploratory research involving managers and users of four innovative organizations in the social sector in Portugal: (1) ‘Socialis,’ which deals with teenage mothers; (2) ‘CrescerSer’ that supports children and young people at risk; (3) ‘SAOM,’ which provides training in hospitality domains to homeless and other vulnerable people; and (4) ‘Mundos de Vida’ that seeks to improve foster care practices and approaches
The activities of Socialis deliver economic and social and psychological value, as they seek to transform the lives of their users by providing them with social, emotional and practical skills, likely to facilitate their employability

Summary

Introduction

Social and ecological perspective on value—the so called ‘triple-bottom line’—is needed if we are to have a better understanding of value creation in modern societies [1]. While academics still acknowledge the conceptual value of such approaches, a refreshing and inspiring framework has been proposed which adds an underestimated yet critical psychological dimension to the triple-bottom line approach to value creation Because it includes a distinctive yet interrelated set of four values, this model has been dubbed ‘Tetrad-value theory’ [2]. Some of these intangible features are sensitive in public and social sectors [6] In this context, this study aims to shed light into the fact that many products (goods, services or ideas) have a psychological impact in their users/customers (hereinafter ‘users’), affecting their behaviours and/or transforming their lives. This is rather important in today’s developed societies where many people are looking for emotional counselling; where most sold medicines are related with anxiety, depression and other central nervous system illnesses, with negative psychological implications; where so many vulnerable populations need social and psychological support; where the need for enhanced competencies are crucial for people’s survival; and, where happiness became the ultimate social and personal goal mainly in developed countries

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Conclusion