Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: Values and Attitudes

Duke University, Durham NC

Investigators

Abstract

The aim of this project is to explain fundamental political attitudes as the products of universal values. Anyone attuned to American politics know that the political parties differ in many ways. In social psychology, differences among groups have been explained by differences in fundamental values: basic motivations that construct our world-views. Borrowing from this large literature, this project takes standard measures of universal values developed by Shalon Schwartz (1992) and shows how these values structure political attitudes. While political scientists have long talked about core values, previous research has operationalized concepts like "individualism" with policy-laden questions. Using the values-based questions from the Schwartz Value Inventory, policy is not mentioned, though the construct being measure (on face) is the same. The 56 items that form the Schwartz inventory measure two basic dimensions of human values taht have been verified across multiple cultural and religious settings and have been tested in over 20 languages. In every case, researchers have found the same two motivating dimensions for human values. If values truly motivate political attitudes, the variance should be partially explained by universal values in understanding measures as diverse as partisan identification, conservatism, authoritarianism, and social dominance orientation. This study uses a national sample of undergraduate students and their parents to test the intergenerational transmission of these values, which would help address how partisanship is so highly correlated with parents' partisanship. At the basic level this research can help us understand what really divides Americans across partisan and ideological lines, indentifying differences in fundamental world-views. The broader social value of such research is that understanding the different ways Americans see problems can help all sides better understand each other and move from antagonistic rhetoric to a consciousness of difference.