Testing Schwartz’s Model of Cultural Value Orientations in Europe with the European Social Survey: An Empirical Comparison of Additive Indexes with Factor Scores

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18148/srm/2023.v17i4.8031

Keywords:

European Social Survey (ESS), Schwartz’ Cultural Values, Schwartz’ Personal Values, Multilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Multidimensional Scaling

Abstract

The aim of this study is to compare results of measuring the Schwartz (2004) cultural value orientations using multilevel confirmatory  factor analysis (ML CFA) vs. the unweighted aggregated means (simple means) used in previous research. We conduct this comparison with data from the 21-item short version of the Portrait Values Questionnaire in 6 rounds of the European Social Survey (ESS). An advantage of estimating factor scores via ML CFA vs. simple means is that ML CFA weights the impact of the factors on their indicators empirically. It also permits simultaneously assessing Schwartz' 10 individual level and 7 cultural level values by decomposing the total variances of the 21 items into a within part (individual values) and a between part (cultural values), while controlling for random measurement errors. High intercorrelations between related values in ML CFA required unifying two pairs of cultural values. Comparing correlations with theoretically relevant macro indicators of the factor scores and of the simple means of the cultural values indicated somewhat higher external validity for the factor scores. Taken together, the findings suggest that the derived factor scores provide suitable macro indicators of Schwartz' cultural value orientations for future studies using the ESS data.

Author Biographies

Hermann Duelmer, Institute of Sociology and Social Psychology, University of Cologne, Germany

Hermann Dülmer is assistant professor of sociology at the University of Cologne (Germany).

Shalom H. Schwartz, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel

Shalom H. Schwartz is Professor Emeritus of Psychology—the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a social psychologist (PhD, University of Michigan) and a past president of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology.

Jan Cieciuch, Institute of Psychology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University, Warsaw, Poland, and University Research Priority Program ‘‘Social Networks’’, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Jan Cieciuch is an associate professor of psychology at the Cardinal Wyszynski University in Warsaw (Poland) and a researcher at the University Research Priority Program on Social Networks at the University of Zurich (Switzerland).

Eldad Davidov, Institute of Sociology and Social Psychology, University of Cologne, Germany and Department of Sociology and University Research Priority Program ‘‘Social Networks’’, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Eldad Davidov is professor of sociology at the Universities of Cologne (Germany) and Zurich (Switzerland) and co-director of the university research priority program on social networks at the University of Zurich. He was president of the European Survey Research Association (ESRA) between 2015 and 2017.

Peter Schmidt, Institute for Political Science and Centre for International Development and Environment (ZEU), Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Germany

Peter Schmidt is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Giessen and member of the Centre for International Development and Environment and Research (ZEU) and research fellow at the Centre for Psychosomatic Research at the University of Mainz. He has been project director and program director at ZUMA Mannheim now GESIS Mannheim.

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Published

2023-12-22 — Updated on 2024-01-23

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How to Cite

Duelmer, H., Schwartz, S. H., Cieciuch, J., Davidov, E., & Schmidt, P. (2024). Testing Schwartz’s Model of Cultural Value Orientations in Europe with the European Social Survey: An Empirical Comparison of Additive Indexes with Factor Scores. Survey Research Methods, 17(4), 447–463. https://doi.org/10.18148/srm/2023.v17i4.8031 (Original work published December 22, 2023)

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