Values: How They Form and Change

Several psychological and sociological mechanisms have been proposed to explain the formation and change of values in individuals. These mechanisms highlight the interplay of biological, cognitive, emotional, social, and cultural influences. The following table summarizes the mechanisms for the formation and change of values, and the mechanisms are outlined after the table.
Mechanism | Rules in the Mechanism |
---|---|
Genetic and Evolutionary Influences | Genetic predisposition → Influences personality traits → Shapes value priorities |
Socialization Processes | Social interactions (family, education, religion) → Reinforce norms → Internalization of values |
Cognitive and Emotional Development | Cognitive consistency + Emotional reinforcement → Strengthens value adherence |
Social Learning and Cultural Transmission | Exposure to cultural and social models → Shapes long-term value preferences |
Life Events and Personal Experiences | Significant life events → Reassessment of priorities → Value shifts |
Economic and Technological Development | Economic development + Technological exposure → Shift from survival values to self-expression values |
Cognitive Dissonance and Adaptation | Conflict between values and experiences → Psychological discomfort → Value adaptation |
Social Movements and Collective Influence | Societal and generational change → Shift in collective values → New normative standards |
This text is part of the series on decision governance. Decision Governance is concerned with how to improve the quality of decisions by changing the context, process, data, and tools (including AI) used to make decisions. Understanding decision governance empowers decision makers and decision stakeholders to improve how they make decisions with others. Start with “What is Decision Governance?” and find all texts on decision governance here.
Mechanisms of Value Formation
Values develop early in life and are shaped by genetic predispositions, socialization, and life experiences.
1. Genetic and Evolutionary Influences
- Values can be influenced by genetic factors, with certain personality traits being partially heritable. Research suggests that some core values, such as a preference for social cooperation or risk aversion, may have evolutionary advantages and therefore be more prevalent in populations over time.
- Evolutionary psychology posits that values promoting survival and group cohesion, such as fairness and reciprocity, have been naturally selected.
- Rule: Genetic predisposition → Influences personality traits → Shapes value priorities
2. Socialization Processes
- Parental Influence: Parents transmit values through direct teaching, reinforcement, and modeling (Grusec & Goodnow, 1994). For example, children raised in households emphasizing “honesty” are more likely to internalize that value.
- Education and Institutions: Schools instill values such as discipline, responsibility, and civic duty (Parsons, 1951).
- Religion and Ideology: Religious teachings shape fundamental values related to morality, altruism, and social responsibility (Rokeach, 1973).
- Rule: Social interactions (family, education, religion) → Reinforce norms → Internalization of values
3. Cognitive and Emotional Development
- Cognitive Consistency Theory: Individuals strive for internal coherence, aligning new experiences with pre-existing values (Festinger, 1957).
- Moral Emotions: Feelings such as guilt, shame, or pride reinforce value-based behavior (Haidt, 2001).
- Rule: Cognitive consistency + Emotional reinforcement → Strengthens value adherence
4. Social Learning and Cultural Transmission
- Observational Learning: Individuals adopt values by observing role models (Bandura, 1986).
- Enculturation: Cultural norms and traditions shape value priorities over time (Hofstede, 2001).
- Rule: Exposure to cultural and social models → Shapes long-term value preferences
Mechanisms of Value Change
Values, while relatively stable, can shift due to life experiences, social changes, and psychological adaptation.
1. Life Events and Personal Experiences
- Major Life Transitions: Marriage, parenthood, career changes, or trauma can shift values (Hitlin & Piliavin, 2004). For example, a person may prioritize “career success” in youth but later shift towards “family orientation.”
- Crisis and Adversity: Economic hardships or political instability can reshape priorities, such as increasing the importance of “security” over “freedom.”
- Rule: Significant life events → Reassessment of priorities → Value shifts
2. Economic and Technological Development
- Inglehart’s Postmaterialism Theory (1997): As societies become wealthier, values shift from survival-based (security, conformity) to self-expression-based (individualism, creativity).
- Technological Influence: Digitalization and globalization expose individuals to diverse perspectives, potentially altering value systems.
- Rule: Economic development + Technological exposure → Shift from survival values to self-expression values
3. Cognitive Dissonance and Adaptation
- Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger, 1957): When new experiences conflict with existing values, individuals adjust their values or behaviors to reduce psychological discomfort.
- Identity Adaptation: People modify values to maintain social belonging or professional alignment.
- Rule: Conflict between values and experiences → Psychological discomfort → Value adaptation
4. Social Movements and Collective Influence
- Normative Pressure: Societal changes, such as gender equality movements, shift value structures by redefining norms.
- Generational Shifts: Younger generations often develop values different from their predecessors due to exposure to new social, political, and technological environments (Twenge et al., 2012).
- Rule: Societal and generational change → Shift in collective values → New normative standards
References
- Bandura, A. (1986). Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Prentice-Hall.
- Festinger, L. (1957). A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Stanford University Press.
- Grusec, J. E., & Goodnow, J. J. (1994). Impact of parental discipline methods on the child’s internalization of values. Developmental Psychology, 30(1), 4-19.
- Haidt, J. (2001). The emotional dog and its rational tail: A social intuitionist approach to moral judgment. Psychological Review, 108(4), 814-834.
- Hitlin, S., & Piliavin, J. A. (2004). Values: Reviving a dormant concept. Annual Review of Sociology, 30, 359-393.
- Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions, and Organizations Across Nations. Sage.
- Inglehart, R. (1997). Modernization and Postmodernization: Cultural, Economic, and Political Change in 43 Societies. Princeton University Press.
- Olver, J. M., & Mooradian, T. A. (2003). Personality traits and personal values: A conceptual and empirical integration. Personality and Individual Differences, 35(1), 109-125.
- Rokeach, M. (1973). The Nature of Human Values. Free Press.
- Schaller, M., Murray, D. R., & Bangerter, A. (2017). Implications of the behavioral immune system for social cognition, social interaction, and social influence. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 55, 77-127.
- Twenge, J. M., Campbell, W. K., & Carter, N. T. (2012). Declines in trust and social capital: The role of generational shifts and the internet. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 38(10), 1343-1357.
Decision Governance
This text is part of the series on the design of decision governance. Other texts on the same topic are linked below. This list expands as I add more texts on decision governance.
- Introduction to Decision Governance
- Stakeholders of Decision Governance
- Foundations of Decision Governance
- How to Spot Decisions in the Wild?
- When Is It Useful to Reify Decisions?
- Decision Governance Is Interdisciplinary
- Individual Decision-Making: Common Models in Economics
- Group Decision-Making: Common Models in Economics
- Individual Decision-Making: Common Models in Psychology
- Group Decision-Making: Common Models in Organizational Theory
- Role of Explanations in the Design of Decision Governance
- Design of Decision Governance
- Design Parameters of Decision Governance
- Factors influencing how an individual selects and processes information in a decision situation, including which information the individual seeks and selects to use:
- Psychological factors, which are determined by the individual, including their reaction to other factors:
- Attention:
- Memory:
- Mood:
- Emotions:
- Commitment:
- Temporal Distance:
- Social Distance:
- Expectations
- Uncertainty
- Attitude:
- Values:
- Goals:
- Preferences:
- Competence
- Social factors, which are determined by relationships with others:
- Impressions of Others:
- Reputation:
- Social Hierarchies:
- Social Hierarchies: Why They Matter for Decision Governance
- Social Hierarchies: Benefits and Limitations in Decision Processes
- Social Hierarchies: How They Form and Change
- Power: Influence on Decision Making and Its Risks
- Power: Relationship to Psychological Factors in Decision Making
- Power: Sources of Legitimacy and Implications for Decision Authority
- Power: Stability and Destabilization of Legitimacy
- Power: What If High Decision Authority Is Combined With Low Power
- Power: How Can Low Power Decision Makers Be Credible?
- Social Learning:
- Psychological factors, which are determined by the individual, including their reaction to other factors:
- Factors influencing information the individual can gain access to in a decision situation, and the perception of possible actions the individual can take, and how they can perform these actions:
- Governance factors, which are rules applicable in the given decision situation:
- Incentives:
- Incentives: Components of Incentive Mechanisms
- Incentives: Example of a Common Incentive Mechanism
- Incentives: Building Out An Incentive Mechanism From Scratch
- Incentives: Negative Consequences of Incentive Mechanisms
- Crowding-Out Effect: The Wrong Incentives Erode the Right Motives
- Crowding-In Effect: The Right Incentives Amplify the Right Motives
- Rules
- Rules-in-use
- Rules-in-form
- Institutions
- Incentives:
- Technological factors, or tools which influence how information is represented and accessed, among others, and how communication can be done
- Environmental factors, or the physical environment, humans and other organisms that the individual must and can interact with
- Governance factors, which are rules applicable in the given decision situation:
- Factors influencing how an individual selects and processes information in a decision situation, including which information the individual seeks and selects to use:
- Change of Decision Governance
- Public Policy and Decision Governance:
- Compliance to Policies:
- Transformation of Decision Governance
- Mechanisms for the Change of Decision Governance