62CHAPTER 3 Culture of new technologies, are influencing our basic values (Gecas 2008). Although values vary a great deal from culture to culture, research shows that certain values are common across cultures. A series of studies in dozens of countries over two decades by Shalom Schwartz and his colleagues (Davidov et al. 2008; Schwartz 1992, 1994) has identifi ed 10 distinct values that are widely shared and generally understood to have a similar meaning across cultures (Schwartz et al. 2001): Power Universalism (appreciation of Achievement and concern for all humanity) Hedonism (the seeking Benevolence (generosity and of personal pleasure) compassion) Stimulation (the seeking Tradition of excitement and Conformity (the desire to personal challenge) blend in) Self-direction Security Of course, the relative importance of each value on this list differs from culture to culture, and the values do not always coexist easily. It may be diffi cult, for example, to value power and benevolence or security and stimulation equally. Thus different cultures prioritize values differently, and these differences can be a major source of confl ict between cultures. For example, theocratic societies such as Iran or Saudi Arabia, which are ruled or dominated by religious authorities, value tradition and conformity. They often dislike what they perceive to be the values of secular Western democracies, such as self-direction, stimulation, and relative hedonism as exemplifi ed by popular notions of “rugged individualism,” the widespread promotion of consumption, and the prevalence of sexualized media content. That some people place a higher priority on one set of values over another can also be a source of confl ict within a particular society. Sociologist James Davison Hunter (1991, 1994) has argued that the United States is in the midst of an ongoing culture war, an intense disagreement about core values and moral positions. According to Hunter, the fault lines of this confl ict are readily apparent in venues such as the family, schools, and the arts. For example, debates about same-sex marriage are fundamentally confl icts over the defi nition of marriage and family. In schools, debates about how to teach American history and sex education are part of broader confl icts about patriotism and sexuality. The arts have long been an arena in which the values of free expression and respect for tradition clash. In 2010, for example, the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., removed a video from an exhibit of work on sexual differences after a Catholic organization complained that the disastrous for Niger’s poor. Without price controls and without the support of traditional charity, many could not afford even the most basic foods. Facing widespread starvation, the country had to call on international aid organizations for help. Sociologists are often reluctant to label the major values of a given society because they do not want to imply that values are unchanging or universal. The most widely cited sociological description of American values appears in the classic book American Society: A Sociological Interpretation by Robin Williams (1970). Williams identifi ed 15 basic value orientations as central to post–World War II society in the United States: Achievement and success Freedom Activity and work Conformity Moral orientation Science and secular rationality Humanitarian mores Nationalism-patriotism Effi ciency and practicality Democracy Progress Individual personality Material comfort Racism and related-group Equality superiority Williams described these value orientations as tendencies and suggested a series of questions to help understand their depth and meaning. For each value on his list—and, we would add, for each value you would include in an updated, twenty-fi rst-century list of American values— Williams (1970, 453) would ask a series of questions: “Is it actually an important value in American society? How do we know whether it is or not? Where does it stand in relation to other values? What groups or subcultures are the main bearers of the value, and what groups or subcultures are indifferent or opposed?” Finally, Williams asks how do the various value systems “work towards or against the integration of the culture as a whole?” In contrast to Williams, contemporary American sociologists have rarely sought to articulate a list of major American values, but they continue to ask versions of Williams’s probing questions about the sociological signifi cance of values. Summarizing recent research on values, sociologist Robert Wuthnow (2008) recognizes that they explain only partially individuals’ choices, but he notes that “the infl uence of values on behavior remained evident in study after study; people with conservative values voted Republican, people with religious values attended religious services, people with altruistic values did volunteer work, and so on” (p. 337). In addition, values change over time, especially during times of broad social change. For example, we may ask how, if at all, changes in contemporary society, including globalization and the development
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