World Values Survey Research Articles

“When Jobs Are Scarce”

Abstract This study examines the influence of Islam on attitudes toward female labor force participation as reflected in responses to the World Values Survey (WVS) question: “When jobs are scarce, should men have more right to a job than women?”. The authors expect that respondents in Islamic (Muslim-majority) countries will have more positive attitudes toward this statement than respondents in non-Islamic countries. They test the hypothesis that the higher the percentage of Muslims in a given country, the more likely respondents are to agree with this statement. The correlation is in the predicted direction, statistically significant and quite strong. Meanwhile, tests show that respondents in Arab countries show particularly strong support for this statement (significantly stronger than in non-Arab Muslim-majority countries). Based on this, the authors try to discuss possible determinants of such attitudes. Particular support is observed in Arab countries and those non-Arab countries that have experienced a strong Arab influence. These countries can be identified with the Umayyad Caliphate in the past and may have been particularly influenced by non-Islamic elements of Arab culture that are not directly related to Islam.

Married to the job: When your partner's business is the other significant other

This study delves into the relationship between spousal self-employment and life satisfaction, specifically emphasizing the potential moderating effects of the perceived significance of family, leisure, and work. Relationships where both partners are self-employed were also examined. Data from Wave 7 of the World Value Survey (2017–2022) gathered from respondents across 60 nations were analysed by running regression analysis. The results revealed that a high perceived value placed on family, leisure time, and work is associated with lower life satisfaction among spouse-self-employed individuals. Moreover, it was found that life satisfaction is significantly lower when both partners are self-employed. These insights present pivotal implications for policymakers and the self-employed community at large.

Support for sexual and reproductive health and rights in Sub-Saharan Africa: a new index based on World Values Survey data

BackgroundAddressing attitudes is central to achieving sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and Agenda 2030. We aimed to develop a comprehensive index to measure attitudinal support for SRHR, expanding opportunities for global trend analyses and tailored interventions.MethodsWe designed a new module capturing attitudes towards different dimensions of SRHR, collected via the nationally representative World Values Survey in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Zimbabwe during 2020–2021 (n = 3,711). We used exploratory factor analysis of 58 items to identify sub-scales and an overall index. Adjusted regression models were used to evaluate the index according to sociodemographic characteristics, stratified by country and sex.ResultsA 23-item, five-factor solution was identified and used to construct sub-indices reflecting support for: (1) sexual and reproductive rights, (2) neighborhood sexual safety, (3) gender-equitable relationships, (4) equitable masculinity norms, and (5) SRHR interventions. These five sub-indices performed well across countries and socioeconomic subgroups and were combined into a comprehensive “SRHR Support Index”, standardized on a 1–100 scale (mean = 39.19, SD = 15.27, Cronbach’s alpha = 0.80) with higher values indicating more support for SRHR. Mean values were highest in Kenya (45.48, SD = 16.78) followed by Ethiopia (40.2, SD = 13.63), and lowest in Zimbabwe (32.65, SD = 13.77), with no differences by sex. Higher education and being single were associated with more support, except in Ethiopia. Younger age and urban residence correlated with more support among males only.ConclusionThe SRHR Support Index has the potential to broaden SRHR attitude research from a comprehensive perspective – addressing the need for a common measure to track progress over time.

Trust as a Determinant of Subjective Well-Being in Russia

The article considers social trust as a key element in the structure of social capital. Based on the results of international and Russian research, the role of trust in socioeconomic development and its impact on subjective life satisfaction is revealed. We discuss the circumstances of the “trust deficit” as a possible reason for Russia’s significant lag behind the leading countries in world happiness ratings. The data sources for our empirical research are the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey – Higher School of Economics (RLMS-HSE) and the World Values Survey. In our empirical analysis, special attention is paid to overcoming the problem of endogeneity, which arises as a result of two-way causal relationships between trust and happiness. The hypothesis of a significant positive effect of generalized social trust on life satisfaction in Russia is confirmed by the results of econometric modelling. Our results fit into the broad context of international studies of the social capital impact on subjective assessments of the quality of life. Based on Russian data, we confirm the conclusion that the impact of increasing social capital on subjective well-being across the whole society is strongly positive. The conclusion of our work concerns the possibility of raising the subjective well-being of Russians by improving informal institutions by means of social trust strengthening.

Cultural transmission and religious belief: An extended replication of Gervais and Najle (2015) using data from the International Social Survey Programme.

Beliefs in supernatural agents or religious beliefs are pervasive, yet there are individual differences in such beliefs. Although various factors have been proposed as relevant, recent research has increasingly emphasized the importance of cultural learning, showing that enthusiastic religious behavior (credibility enhancing displays; CREDs) from parents predicts increased religious beliefs among their children. In addition to this kin-biased learning, Gervais and Najle (2015) analyzed data from the World Values Survey to demonstrate that the number of adults who show religious CREDs is also an important predictor of people's beliefs, indicating that individuals develop their religious beliefs through conformist learning. This pre-registration study aimed to replicate and extend these findings by analyzing data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), which is another large social survey. We examined the generalizability of the results by analyzing multigenerational samples. Multilevel regression and signal detection analyses revealed that the presence of both kin-biased and conformist learning cues was significantly associated with respondents' religious beliefs. Moreover, they suggested tension between the two cultural learning cues, thereby suggesting that the effect of kin-biased learning on religious beliefs becomes stronger (weaker) when the cue for conformist learning is unclear (clear). These results support the idea that these two types of cultural learning are crucial to the development of religious beliefs.

CO2 Emissions and Subjective Well-Being: Empirical Evidence from The Southeast Asian Population

An increasing amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) affects the planet and people. As a primary contributor to climate change, CO2 has been a subject of discussion among researchers. Many have been studying the complex relationship and impact of CO2. However, a study examining the influence of increased CO2 emissions on human subjective well-being is limited. This study aims to fill the gap by utilizing a sample of 9,724 Southeast Asians from the Seventh World Values Survey (2017-2021). Well-being is measured using a subjective approach, such as happiness and life satisfaction. The ordered probit regression analysis indicates that increased per capita CO2 emissions decrease happiness and life satisfaction. Additionally, the higher individuals' financial and health levels, the higher their relationship with their happiness and life satisfaction will be. This study encourages further research investigating a specific country's relationship between CO2 emissions and the well-being of its population.

Attitudes towards Homosexuality in Europe: Analysis of the European Values Study

Attitudes towards Homosexuality in Europe: Analysis of the European Values Study

Wealth inequality, income inequality, and subjective well-being: A cross-country study

Abstract There are conflicting theories about whether individuals like or dislike inequality, or in other words, whether living in an unequal country increases or decreases their subjective well-being. Empirical literature has so far focused on income inequality and has not yet reached a consensus. In the present paper, we focus on wealth inequality, an aspect that has so far been overlooked in the happiness literature. The aim of the present paper is to systematically investigate the wealth inequality–happiness relationship and compare the results to the income inequality–happiness association. Furthermore, we focus on different parts of income or wealth distribution, rather than using a single inequality measure. We use data from the integrated World Values Surveys and European Values Surveys for over 50 countries, matched with the World Inequality Database data over the years 1981–2020. Following our analyses, we find some evidence supporting the “tunnel effect” theory: individuals are happier with increases in the top 10% and top 1% shares of wealth and less happy with increases in the middle 40% share of wealth, especially in low- and middle-income countries. In high-income countries, increasing the bottom 50% share of wealth increases individuals’ life satisfaction, suggesting that they favor redistribution.

The mediating effect of trust on financial development and stock market comovement in BRICS economies

This study examines the effects of financial development on the stock market comovement of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) on the one hand and the US Dow Jones on the other. Its main goal is to find out if trust has a mediating effect on financial development using data from the World Bank and the World Value Survey (WVS). Panel data analysis along with ARDL methods helped the authors obtain robust results. It was found that financial development plays a significant role in determining stock market comovement among the countries in question and that trust also has a moderating impact. The analysis was extended to the institutional and market factors of financial development. The paper introduces trust as a mediating variable that positively affects financial development, which in turn promotes stock market integration and comovement. Its results imply that investors should consider financial development and trust levels of a country when considering portfolio allocation for global diversification purposes, especially in emerging markets. Countries with insufficient trust levels, like Brazil, could benefit from improving their trust score through enhancing financial development and stability.

Formal long-term care, individualisation and filial responsibility: a multi-level analysis of 21 European countries

PurposeDue to the rapid ageing of the continent's population, a significant surge in long-term care expenses for the elderly is expected across Europe in the coming years. Could a potential solution to this challenge involve the increased informal care provided by adult children? In this context, we examined a general view or moral duty of European citizens regarding whether adult children should assume responsibility for providing long-term care to the elderly.Design/methodology/approachOur multilevel analysis draws on individual-level data from the 2017 European Value Study and country-level data from various European sources encompassing participants from 21 member countries of the European Union.FindingsThe findings reveal that in nations where public long-term care services are sufficiently available and of superior quality, there is a negative sentiment towards the notion that adult children should bear the responsibility for elderly care. In total, 71% of the country-level variance in our dependent variable was explained by the availability and quality of formal long-term care in a country. Furthermore, various individual-level attributes contribute to shaping attitudes towards care-giving responsibility. We observed that women, middle-aged individuals, those without religious affiliations, those with modern gender role attitudes and non-immigrants tended to hold unfavourable attitudes towards the responsibility of adult children in long-term care provision.Originality/valueThere are relatively many studies on the general attitude of the population towards filial obligation. However, so far there have been very few studies available that examine the population's attitude towards the obligation of adult children to commit to their parents' long-term care. Our research explains the variation of the phenomenon in Europe with both country-level and individual-level factors.

Differential gains from news use in Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe: Variations in the moderating influence of political talk on engagement

A limited but growing body of research has explored the role of media and communication in cultivating engaged citizens in the new and established democracies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Using representative data from the World Values Survey, this study advances the existing research by examining the differential gains model across four countries that differ in terms of democratization, including Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe. Findings suggest that the moderating effect of political talk on the association between news use and political engagement likely varies across countries that differ in terms of democratization. Specifically, we find support for the differential gains model across all forms of political engagement in Kenya, limited support in Nigeria and Ethiopia, and no support for the model in Zimbabwe. Implications for theory and suggestions for future inquiry are discussed.

Religious Polarization in Europe

Abstract We define two types of religious polarization and investigate the extent to which they are present across European countries, based on data from the 2008 to 2017 European Values Study and hierarchical linear modeling. The first type is polarization by religiosity, with declines in the middle ground between the actively religious and the nonreligious as secularization reaches an advanced stage. The second type is issue polarization, with the religious and secular taking different positions on a range of socio-political values, including social conservatism and ethnic nationalism. We find limited evidence of bimodality in the distribution of religiosity. We find more evidence, however, of issue polarization between the religious and secular in Europe, especially in social conservatism. Religious polarization should thus be understood as a multidimensional concept where one dimension may be more prevalent than others in society.

Gender attitudes and the new cultural divide in Europe

This paper investigates how gender attitudes relate to the new cultural divide between cosmopolitans and communitarians in Europe, defined by immigration and EU attitudes. We examine how gender attitudes vary across this divide, how large and diverse the ideological groups are, and differences between Western Europe and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Using data from the European Values Study 2017, we conduct a latent profile analysis to investigate the most common of nine possible combinations of attitudes regarding gender, immigration, and the EU. In Western Europe, we find substantial divisions over gender attitudes across profiles, but not over immigration and EU attitudes. In CEE, we find disagreement over immigration attitudes coupled with centrist EU attitudes and ambivalent gender attitudes. In both regions, gender attitudes appear to cross-cut attitudes relating to the new cultural divide. These findings have implications for understanding how socio-cultural values shape political behavior and preferences in Europe.

Revolution, Covid-19, and War in Armenia: Impacts on Various Forms of Trust

Abstract This paper explores how interpersonal and institutional trust in Armenia was impacted by three dramatic events in its recent history: the popular uprising of 2018 (also known as the Velvet Revolution), the pandemic, and the war. We use World Value Survey, Caucasus Barometer, and other available surveys to demonstrate the relative stability of interpersonal trust, contrasted with swings in institutional trust. We also show an initial “rally around the flag” effect during the early period of the pandemic, followed by disillusionment. Overall, gains in trust due to the Velvet Revolution outweigh the losses in trust due to Covid-19 and war.

Attitudes Towards Economic Inequality in a Global Perspective: Evidence from the World Value Survey

Scholars have explored the factors responsible for shaping people’s attitudes towards economic inequality. Yet, this research has focused exclusively on Western countries. This is an important limitation: only by looking at the different world regions, scholars can fully elucidate the major factors involved. To address this, the paper examines data from the World Value Survey, a database of representative samples drawn from more than one hundred countries. The analyses reveal that people tolerate economic inequalities more when they have higher salary, are better educated, are male, and live in poorer countries. The data also indicates that a country’s level of income inequality has no impact on the attitude towards economic inequality reported by citizens. Altogether, these findings elucidate the general factors shaping people’s views on inequality worldwide, contributing to understanding in which conditions people support egalitarian policies.

Self-Reported Health and Happiness Among Sub-Regions of Asia: The World Value Survey 2017-2021

Self-Reported Health and Happiness Among Sub-Regions of Asia: The World Value Survey 2017-2021

The Influence of Media Democracy on Attitudes towards Homosexuality in Taiwan and China

Abstract Using data collected in the seventh wave of the World Values Survey, this article examines how traditional and new media consumption have had very different effects on attitudes towards homosexuality in Taiwan and China. It further explores how such differences reflect each society’s media democracy. A historical analysis of the democratic movements and their relations to media freedom in Taiwan and China is presented, which provides the research background and theoretical foundation for our assumptions as part of the literature review. The ensuing statistical analysis verifies these assumptions in depth. Our findings show that the effect of new media is generally positive in both societies, whereas that of traditional media varies: it is very negative in China yet statistically insignificant in Taiwan. Based on these results, we argue that the more democratised the media space, the more likely it is to promote tolerance of homosexuality.

Psychological and cultural effects of different kinds of danger. An exploration based on survey data from 79 countries

AbstractIndividual danger and collective danger have very different effects according to the predictions of a theory called regality theory, based on evolutionary psychology. This study explores the effects of different kinds of danger on 37 different indicators of psychological and cultural responses to danger based on data from two waves of the World Values Survey, including 173,000 respondents in 79 countries.The results show that individual danger and collective danger have very different – and often opposite – psychological and cultural effects. Collective dangers are positively correlated with many indicators related to authoritarianism, nationalism, discipline, intolerance, morality, religiosity, etc. Individual dangers have neutral or opposite correlations with many of these indicators. Infectious diseases have little or no effects on these indicators. Many previous studies that confound different kinds of danger may be misleading.Several psychological and cultural theories are discussed in relation to these results. The observed effects of collective danger are in agreement with many of these theories while individual danger has unexpected effects. The findings are not in agreement with terror management theory and pathogen stress theory.

Enough Terror to Belong: The Nonlinear Association of Death Anxiety with Group Identification

Death anxiety is presumed to be positively associated with group identification; however, recent evidence of a null correlation between the two constructs raises questions regarding this assumption. In contrast to the traditional linear perspective, we proposed and tested a J-shaped curvilinear association that only death anxiety beyond a certain threshold predicts group identification. Using two-wave longitudinal data from the UK, study 1 (N=1,402) revealed that only after reaching a moderate-to-high level could death anxiety measured during the COVID-19 pandemic positively predict later identification with the community, one’s country, and all humanity. Furthermore, using World Values Survey data, study 2 (N=56,871) found that death-related anxiety (i.e., worry about a terrorist attack) was only positively associated with perceived closeness to one’s village, county, and country after reaching a moderate-to-high level. Our findings provide a novel insight into the process of managing terror and the replication failure of the mortality salience effect.

Corruption spills over on citizens: The case of self‐reported motivation to cheat on tax

AbstractCorruption poses a significant threat to societies’ social and economic fabric, eroding trust and contractual relationships between governments and citizens. This study investigates the repercussions of corruption spillover on individuals and explores how they adjust their motivation to engage in tax cheating by exploiting two distinct types of corruption heterogeneities at both individual and national levels. Leveraging newly collected individual corruption experiences locally from the World Value Survey alongside national‐level corruption data from Transparency International, we employ multilevel hierarchical modeling to estimate the effects of corruption on individual tax behavior. Our findings reveal that corruption negatively impacts people's willingness to comply with tax laws, with individuals who have personally experienced corruption exhibiting a more pronounced erosion of tax morale compared to those who have not. By shedding light on the intricate dynamics of corruption's influence on tax compliance, this paper contributes to our understanding of the broader implications of corruption for people and society. This paper can also inform policymakers and stakeholders in designing targeted interventions to mitigate the adverse consequences of corruption and restore citizens’ trust in their government.