Individual Value Systems Research Articles

Words for transition in Latvia: A review essay

The use of new words and old words with new meanings is an essential part of the process associated with the transition from one social system to another. In Latvia, a critical mass of players in politics are helped by the media, especially newspapers, where concepts of the democratic society are introduced, reviewed, and discussed at considerable length. As the country approaches the elections of 1993, many concepts important for political literacy are, if not yet adopted in many individual value systems, understood. Words have meaning in Latvian politics. Conversely, confusion reigns in the Latvian economy. Many words have many meanings. Others have no meaning. Communications in the economy lack not only purpose and direction; they lack a basic inventory of commonly understood key words. There is no lack of interest in economic and business relationships. Indeed, the understanding of these relationships is accepted as vital to the survival of individuals, organizations, and the country itself. At a time when most of the population is living below the poverty line, courses and lectures on business topics are well attended. Foreign language teachers are working overtime. Dictionaries on economic terminology are in demand. The expectations of dictionary users vary. Some are content to find a satisfactory word. Others look for the meaning a word has, and still others really want an introduction to an economic concept new to them. Few are pleased with their discoveries, most are disappointed. Their needs are not easily met in a

Personal Values Underlying the Moral Philosophies of Marketing Professionals

The importance of personal values as determinants of marketing ethics decisions has generally been recognized by the emerging marketing ethics theories. For example, Ferrell and Gresham (1985) include value structure as part of the individual influencing the ethi cal/unethical decision process in their marketing ethics model. In their words, [individual factors (including knowledge, values, attitude, and intentions) are posited as interacting with organizational factors (including significant others and opportunity factors) to influence individuals involved in an ethical/unethical decision-making dilemma (p. 88). Recognizing the potential impact of an individual's value system on marketing ethics decisions, Hunt and Vitell (1992), in their retrospective and revision of their general theory of marketing ethics (Hunt and Vitell 1986), call for explorations of the impact of different values on ethical decision making. Although one's value system has generally been recognized by the marketing ethics theorists as a deter minant of ethical decisions, their theories don't specify which values influence what aspects of marketing ethics decisions. This study is an attempt to explore the relationship between selected values and certain aspects of marketing ethics decision making. In particular, it examines the relative influences of personal values on two basic dimensions of the marketers' personal moral philosophies relativism and idealism (Forsyth 1980). Although there has been a myriad of empirical work to learn about the ethical decision making of marketers (e.g., Mayo and Marks 1990; Reidenbach and Robin 1990; Singhapakdi and Vitell 1990,1991; Vitell and Hunt 1990), to date there

Ethics in Extension

Ethical activity cannot be mandated, since ethics are an individual value system that interacts with, and is supported or inhibited by, the moral values of society and any restrictive legislation. However, discussion of ethical topic areas assist in the establishment of individual and societal ethical standards. Extension specialists are characterized as being dedicated professionals; advocates of the industry and of consumers; and persons interested in the long-term success of the poultry system, which results in benefits to society. Too often, they also are characterized as accepting of situations that must be changed if the poultry system is to survive and to progress. Administrators have the power and, therefore, the responsibility to ensure policy decisions are ethical and to examine the long-term effects of those policy decisions. Many administrators have the respect of their agricultural industries and of Extension personnel because of their attempt to create an ethical environment.The objective of Extension personnel should not be ethical perfection, which is unattainable, but rather recognition of imperfections in themselves and the system with attempts to correct deficiencies. Basic questions of ethics or fairness should be discussed before attempting to create changes in individual behavior or in a system. There is little value to great philosophical debates or protestations of unethical behavior if there is no concurrent attempt to modify situations that led to initial ethical concerns.

A Comparative Analysis of Entrepreneur and College Business Student Values

ABSTRACT Both entrepreneurs and senior‐level college business students were surveyed to determine similarities and differences in their values, under the premise that students who share similar values with those held by entrepreneurs may have promise of entrepreneurial potential. All respondents were administered the Rokeach Value Survey which, through a process of rank‐ordering, is used to determine two hierarchies of value importance for individuals.The first hierarchy reflects an individual's terminal value system, or those values associated with end‐states of existence. The second hierarchy reflects an individual's instrumental value system, or those values associated with modes of conduct. The resulting data provided a tabulation of medians, rank order composites and levels of significance for the terminal and instrumental values, respectively, of both samples.Rank order composites were used as general indices in comparing the position of a particular value in the total hierarchy of values and for comparing the position of a particular value across the two groups. Emphasis was placed on those values which were ranked very low or very high by the entrepreneurs. Comparisons of student value rankings relative to those values the entrepreneurs held highest and lowest were then conducted. The findings indicated that there were value differences between the total sample of entrepreneurs and students, as well as between female entrepreneurs and female student values, but there were few differences between male entrepreneur and male student values.In addition to the above comparisons, median analysis between entrepreneur and student terminal and instrumental values were conducted. An examination of the general population of entrepreneurs and students revealed that twelve of the eighteen terminal values of the entrepreneurs and students were significantly different at the (.05) level Only four of the eighteen instrumental values were significantly different (.05) level between the entrepreneurs and students.The median analysis between male entrepreneurs and male student values showed no significant differences. However, the median analysis between female entrepreneur and female student values showed that seven of the eighteen instrumental and eleven of the eighteen terminal values were significantly different at the (.05) level.Although not examined, it is likely that individual students in the sample do share the value profiles of the entrepreneurs. If so, and if generally accepted value profiles are established for entrepreneurs, such students might be counseled to consider the entrepreneurial life.

Ethics in Extension

AbstractEthical activity cannot be mandated. An ethic is an individual value system which interacts with and is supported or inhibited by the moral values of society and any restrictive legislation. Discussions of ethical topic areas assist in the establishment of individual and consensus ethical standards. Extension specialists are characterized as being dedicated professionals; advocates of the industry and consumers; and persons interested in the longterm success of the poultry system, which results in benefits to society. They also are too often characterized as accepting situations that must be changed if the poultry system can be expected to survive and progress. Administrators have the power and therefore the responsibility to ensure that policy decisions are ethical, and to look at the long-term effects of policy. Many administrators have the respect of their agricultural industries and of Extension personnel due to their attempt to create an ethical environment.Our objective should not be the unattainable ethical perfection but the status of a practical ethical perfectionist. This status implies that individuals recognize imperfections in themselves and the system and attempt to correct deficiencies. We should start with basic questions of ethics or fairness, because there is little value to great philosophical debates or protestations of unethical behavior, if there is no attempt to create changes in behavior or the system that elicited the initial response.

Individual value systems, organizational investments, and personal constraints as predictors of organizational commitment: Direct or indirect effects?

This study attempted to determine if individual value systems, organizational investments, and personal constraints affect organizational commitment directly or only indirectly through job satisfaction. Previous research has determined that certain job characteristics exert only indirect effects on the value or affective dimension of organizational commitment. The purpose of this study was to examine whether other categories of antecedents have any direct effects on value commitment. The study used hierarchical regression on data from 270 evening MBA students employed full-time in managerial or professional positions. Results showed that organizational investments and the Protestant Work Ethic both exerted significant direct effects on organizational commitment as predicted. Personal constraints showed a negative relationship with value commitment, opposite to the prediction, while the effect of the Materialistic Work Ethic was nonsignificant. However, job satisfaction showed a substantially higher correlation with value commitment than did any other antecedent.

Ethnic Minority Families and Minority Gays and Lesbians

Attitudes toward sexuality differ within the diverse ethnic and racial communities that exist in the U.S., and the cultural values and beliefs surrounding sexuality play a major role in determining how individuals behave within their sociological context. The family unit is the domain where such values and beliefs are nurtured and developed. An individual's value system is shaped and reinforced within the family context which usually reflects the broader community norms. Disclosure of a gay or lesbian sexual preference and lifestyle by a family member presents challenges to ethnic minority families who tend not to discuss sexuality issues and presume a heterosexual orientation. For ethnic minority gays and lesbians the coming out process presents challenges in their identity formation processes and in their loyalties to one community over another. Ethnic gay men and lesbians need to live within three rigidly defined and strongly independent communities: the gay and lesbian community, the ethnic minority...

Value congruence: The interplay of individual and organizational value systems

This paper focuses on the individual manager making difficult decisions within the context of the organization in which he or she is a member. It proposes a method for examining the interplay of individual and corporate value systems, offering a value congruence model. Hypotheses are generated concerning the varying nature of the value conflicts faced by managers. These are then evaluated based upon interview data from a cross-section of managers in two organizations. The impact of differing organizational value systems is discussed, as well as the implications of the study for research in this area.

Salary increment allocation and individual differences

AbstractSixty‐seven MBA students were asked to provide salary increment recommendations for a set of employees. Contrary to past evidence of a preference for an adjustment system, the majority of respondents utilized an absolute merit system for determining salary increases (wherein employees of equal merit were assigned raises of equal dollar magnitude independent of initial base salary). Further analysis suggested the importance of an individual's value system in the decision to employ a particular approach to allocating raises.

What constitutes quality of life? Methodological considerations and suggestions for clinical practice.

Quality of life is considered an inclusive term to be redefined in accordance with the purpose of every investigation. The subjective aspects and individual value systems of patients are illustrated by a short review of empirical studies. It ensues that treatment choices should be made together with the individual patient, based on his attitudes toward quality as well as quantity of survival. The difficulties of this demand are illustrated by the author's own analysis of videotaped interviews. Physicians and patients seem to agree that it is preferable not to discuss anxiety-related topics but to hold out hope for the treatment.

Exploring the Content and Structure of Cross‐Cultural Attitudes

This article describes an instrument designed to assess the content and structure of cultural attitudes. Derived from Kelly's (1955) Role Construct Repertory Test, the technique elicits the personal meaning and organizational properties of the individual's cultural value system. Methods of administration are described and analyses are illustrated by a case example of one counseling student before and after an introductory course in cross‐cultural counseling. Applications of the instrument to issues in research, counseling, and cross‐cultural training are also discussed.

The comparative efficacy of religious and nonreligious imagery for the treatment of mild depression in religious individuals

No previous outcome study in cognitive therapy has examined either the efficacy of imagery modification for depressives or the efficacy of a cognitive therapy geared specifically to the individual's value system. The present study did both of these by comparing the relative therapeutic efficacy of a religious and nonreligious imagery modification for mildly depressed religious individuals. The nonreligious imagery treatment showed no effects beyond those of the self-monitoring treatment or the minimal treatment condition. The religious imagery treatment, however, showed significantly more treatment gains than the self-monitoring or nonreligious imagery treatments, while the self-monitoring plus therapist contact treatment was intermediate in effectiveness.

Sources of values influencing educational evaluation

We may thus expect that while personality factors will give rise to variations in individual value systems, cultural, institutional, and social factors will nevertheless restrict such variations to a reasonably small number, perhaps a few million. (Rokeach, 1968–1969, p. 552)

Borrowing habits among low-income block women

The phenomenon of borrowing habits of low-income black women is an ongoing process. People who live on subsistence incomes, who are forced to live in a community without resources, and who do not know how to manipulate large, unfamiliar social and health systems manipulate those systems with which they are familiar. Among such people, borrowing habits are essential for survival, for seldom does one find a self-sufficient family unit. Consequently, privacy in territorial space is continuously being invaded; artifacts that represent certain meanings and events are not permanent; negotiations, charisma, trustworthiness, and individual value systems are issues and concerns that are always under scrutiny. The examination of the interpersonal process relative to success and failure in the essential borrowing sequelae will be examined in this paper.

Information and Morphology in Cognitive Maps

Information and Morphology in Cognitive Maps

The role of job satisfaction in absence behavior

Two models of absence behavior were compared for a sample of 166 clerical workers in a university setting. The first considered absence behavior as a function of job satisfaction. Additional pressures toward attendance, both internal (the individual's value system) and external (co-workers and job structure), as well as four demographic variables were considered as moderators of the absenteeism—job satisfaction relationship. These additional pressures were termed role pressures. The second model considered absenteeism as a function of role pressures and job satisfaction in an additive rather than a moderated fashion. Only the additive model was supported. The data are discussed in light of the effects of role pressures on absenteeism.

Values and Information Source Preferences

The relationship between an individual's information and value systems has not been adequately explored for several reasons, including failure to agree on a measure of values and, to some extent, the elements that make up a person's information system. Using the Rokeach Value System and a question designed to measure information source preference, it was hypothesized that (1) interpersonal sources of information will be regarded as more important than impersonal sources in providing information useful in striving toward value-directed goals; and (2) instrumental and terminal values will tend to be more closely associated with impersonal and interpersonal sources, respectively. Based on 204 personal interviews, results tended to confirm the first hypothesis but were incomplete concerning the second. Indications were that terminal values discriminated more than did instrumental values among all information source preferences.

On the Management of Inquiry

The problem of managing inquiry is a generalization of the more limited problem of managing research and development projects. As management science attends to the complex problem of educational systems or national science systems, then an awareness is worthwhile of other literatures relevant to the problem. This papersuggests that the manager must determine these major relationships: (a) The institution construct in which inquiry will take place—the literature on universities is reviewed as a source of models for establishing institutional relationships. This involves relating institutionalized activities to external value systems. (b) The internal organizational structure and norms of the inquiry groups themselves—the literature on professionalism is reviewed as a source of models for establishing internal norms and relationships. This involves relating individual member's value systems to the legitimate group norms. (c) The dominating methodology and epistemology employed by the inquirers—relevant literature in philosophy of science (especially social science) is reviewed as a source of models for analyzing different techniques and decision-modes of inquirers. This involves relating the values requisite for efficiency in a given inquiring mode to the values inherent in the purpose of the inquiry.

Test-retest reliability of individual values and value systems

Test-retest reliability of individual values and value systems

Resistance Circuits and Things Synthesized by Number Theory

cording to the same law. The engineer can readily produce other examples-some exquisitely pretty, others fair but mundane-from his bag of tricks and handy formulas. With the observation that there exists identity of form in such diverse phenomena, one man might be led into deep philosophical speculations upon the nature of order in the universe, while his more practical brother might shrug it off as interesting but who needs it? An extremist of the former persuasion might pursue the philosophical vision at all costs while his opposite can be imagined campaigning vigorously against such impractical boondoggles. Depending upon ones system of values, speculations such as these will rate a position somewhere along the real number axis from minus to plus infinity. The amazing collection of mathematical topics which we call thetheory of numbers and the British know as the Higher Arithmetic, in similar vein, qualifies to be rated somewhere on the closed interval from the ridiculous to the sublime, its exact position again depending upon the individual system of values. There is no doubt, however, that the subject has intrigued the amateur and challenged the keenest resources of the greatest professionals since Thales. The source of difficulty in this subject lies in the restriction to whole numbers in the problems it considers. But this appears exotic to us who work with the results of the physical sciences and adopt, or inherit, the assumption that physical phenomena are continuous and their measure capable of occupying any point at all along the real line or in manifolds of higher dimensionality. Once in a great while, a genuine number theory problem finds physical application and more rarely,