Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
Differences within countries:
The impact of age, education, gender, religion, income, and
urbanisation on values
Inge Sieben and Loek Halman (Tilburg University, the Netherlands)
Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
In the Atlas of European Values, the focus mainly is on value differences between countries.
However, it should be noticed that there are also large differences within countries, for example
between older and younger individuals, between men and women, between the higher and the
lower educated, between individuals with a high income and those with a low income, between
religious and non-religious individuals, and between people living in a big city and those living in a
small town1. In this manuscript, we will explain these within-country differences in values, and look
at different value domains such as family, society, religion, and work.
In general, one can say that there is a divide between more ‘modern’ values and more
‘traditional’ values in all these domains. ‘Traditional’ values are based on religious and conventional
values, and are associated with respect for authority, materialist orientations, traditional family and
gender roles, less tolerance towards out-groups, and a focus on hard work. ‘Modern’ values, on the
other hand, emphasize autonomy, freedom for individual choices and personal happiness, and are
connected to higher levels of interpersonal trust and concern for the environment.
Please note that the term ‘modern’ is not meant as a value judgement (in the sense that
modern values would imply being of a ‘higher’ order or being more developed), but simply a word to
denote that some value patterns are more liberal, less conservative and non-traditional than others.
Whether this is a good or a bad thing, is for others to judge.
Age
Younger individuals in society on average display more ‘modern’ values than older people. The
former are less religious, more tolerant towards sexual-ethical issues such as divorce, homosexuality,
abortion,
and
euthanasia, and Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
they prefer less traditional gender roles than the latter. This link between age and values can be
explained by two effects: the birth cohort effect and the life cycle effect.
The birth cohort effect refers to the fact that older individuals are born in a different historical
period with specific economic, political, and cultural circumstances. This socialisation environment is
thought to leave an long lasting imprint on someone’s values and norms. According to Inglehart
(1977; 1997), individuals who grew up in times of economic scarcity and insecurity (the older birth
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There might also be value differences between regions within countries. We will discuss these
regional differences in an accompanying manuscript.
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cohorts), emphasize value priorities that stress survival, such as economic growth, materialist
orientations and conservative attitudes. In contrast, individuals who grow up under conditions of
economic and physical security (e.g. due to high levels of economic affluence and prosperity), shift
their value priorities to an emphasis on subjective well-being and quality of life. This Impact of age,
gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
means that the younger cohorts emphasize post-materialism and self-expression, which are
related to more ‘modern’ values. In other words, it is the period in which individuals grow up during
childhood and early adolescence that shapes their values and beliefs. Once crystallized into stable
orientations, these values appear relatively resistant to change later in life.
The life course perspective, however, argues that people dispose of a lifelong openness to
value change. From this perspective, older individuals are more ‘traditional’ than younger individuals
because they are in a different phase in their lives with accompanying different roles. For example,
older people might be more religious because they are more involved in issues with respect to
mortality as they approach their own death. In addition, it has often been claimed that marriage and
having children makes people more traditional, because family formation brings new
responsibilities. Not only do individuals want to protect their family, they also want to maintain their
status quo as they grow in their occupational career and gather more material possessions. All these
new responsibilities and changing social interaction patterns lead to older individuals becoming
more conservative, adhering more traditional values. Thus, life-course effects are age-dependent
and have to do with personal development as affected by experiencing life events such as family
formation and stages in the employment career.
Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
Gender
The relationship between gender on the one hand and ‘modern’ (or ‘traditional’) values on the other
hand is not as clear-cut as the other differences described here. On the one hand, many scholars
observe that women are more religious and more obedient to authority than men, which would
imply that they on average hold more ‘traditional' values. On the other hand, women appear to be
more solidary, trustful and tolerant than men, orientations which are related to more ‘modern’
values. Explanations for these latter gender differences in values are sought in socialization patterns
and biological sex differences, such as personality. However, ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’ explanations are
so intertwined, that they are very hard to separate analytically. What researchers (such as Beutel &
Marini, 1995) do observe is that women are more extensively involved in caregiving than men in
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both the home and the labour market, which leads to greater role-taking capacities, i.e. the ability to
take the perspective of another to comprehend the other's thoughts, intentions, and emotional
reactions. Women appear to score higher on helpfulness, compassion, and the ability to devote
one's efforts completely to others. They also are more likely than are men to overlook differences
between themselves and others (e.g., other racial and ethnic groups and those with different sexual
preferences) and to have a greater sense of responsibility toward the less privileged. In addition,
men demonstrate a more competitive orientation, and attach more value to status achievement
than women do. This implies that women hold more post-materialist values and display more
tolerant attitudes due to a lower preference for inequality among different social groups than men.
Another theory which may explain the gender gap focuses on the differences in labour
participation. More men than women are engaged in paid employment; while women are involved
in homecare taking activities. Being active on the labour market means that one becomes familiar
with other ways of thinking, acting and behaving, acquaint with alternative ideas, values, beliefs,
attitudes, habits and customs and therefore more open for modern views. Women who take care of
their homes, children and husbands, are less confronted with these new ideas, habits attitudes etc.,
and remain more traditional in their views. According to the workforce theorists, the distinction
between men and women are gradually disappearing because more women have become active in
the labour market in Europe in recent decades. As a result they have the same experiences as their
male colleagues and therefore their beliefs, values, attitudes and views increasingly resemble the
views of men.
Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
Education
In general, the higher educated hold more ‘modern’ values than the lower educated, because
education fosters more liberal attitudes (Hyman & Wright, 1979). Through didactic and social
learning processes, institutions of higher education directly transmit tolerant values to their
students. In a more indirect way, schooling increases one’s breadth of perspective and helps
students to grow personally and cognitively, which increases their knowledge about society and their
ability to handle complex issues. This would invoke both a critical attitude and a more balanced view
on matters. Next to this ‘liberalizing’ experience of schooling itself, educational attainment might be
related to all kinds of social experiences that affect one’s values and beliefs. Compared to the lower
educated, the higher educated tend to read more, travel more frequently, and are more active in
civic and social organizations, which might lead to more liberal and thus more ‘modern’ attitudes.
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This means that the higher educated are more tolerant towards foreigners, homosexuals, and other
marginalized groups in society, but also more in favour of alternative family forms, female labour
market participation, religious diversity, concern for the environment, and intrinsic work attitudes
such as a preference for an interesting job in which one can develop oneself.
Income
Individuals with higher levels of income levels appear to have more modern values than those with
lower levels of income. This is in line with the general argument made by Inglehart (1977) that
economic security induces people to focus on values of post-materialism and self-expression, which
are related to autonomy, freedom of choice, and high levels of tolerance and trust. After all, a high
level of income makes that one does not have to struggle for survival. Basic needs such as food,
shelter, and security are taken care of and can be taken for granted, which leaves room for the
development of other (higher) needs such as affection, self-actualization, and quality of life. When
survival is uncertain, people may experience diversity as threatening and they hold on to traditional
norms and roles. When affluent, people can more easily afford to tolerate new ideas, and equal
rights for women, foreigners, homosexuals and other out-groups tend to be increasingly accepted.
This also materializes in work values: individuals with higher levels of income stress intrinsic aspects
of work more than individuals with lower levels of income, simply because extrinsic aspects of work
(income, security) are already at a high level. This makes that they can focus on the content of a job:
is it interesting, challenging, helping to develop oneself?
Religion
Many religions (including Christianity, Judaism and Islam) emphasize ‘traditional’ values such as
obedience to authority, importance of marriage and having children, traditional gender roles, and a
focus on hard work. Although the level of this emphasis depends on the specific religious affiliation
or denomination, it is a clear message that all religions spread and which is repeated in religious
texts, services, and other church activities. Not only will those who regularly attend religious services
hear the religious message from the clergy more often, such ceremonies also create opportunities to
meet others with the same religious background. Therefore, going to church stimulates social
interaction with people adhering to similar religious ideas and traditional views on family, children,
and gender roles. These close-knit networks will further strengthen religious and traditional norms.
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Impact of age, gender, education, religion, income and urbanisation
As a consequence, religious people and especially regular church-goers will internalize their
religions’ values and display more traditional values than individuals who are not religious.
Urbanisation
Finally, people living in urbanized areas are expected to hold more ‘modern’ views, because of the
more densely populated and socially heterogeneous environment they live in. For example, Allport’s
(1954) contact theory states that intergroup contact is an effective way to increase tolerance. If
people have the opportunity to communicate with others, they are able to understand and
appreciate different points of views involving life in all kinds of domains, such as religion, family life,
and work. As a result of new appreciation and understanding, prejudice should diminish. This implies
that city-dwellers are more likely to show higher levels of tolerance than people living in rural
communities.
Another line of reasoning relates the rural-urban continuum with the sociological concepts
of ‘Gemeinschaft’ and ‘Gesellschaft’ (Tonniës, [1887] 1955). Gemeinschaft is a community in which
individuals are oriented to the larger collective rather than to their own self-interest. It is
characterized by strong personal relationships and social control. Gemeinschaft therefore is often
linked to rural areas in which traditional values prevail. Gesellschaft is, on the other hand,
maintained through individuals acting in their own self-interest. In large cities, people are less closely
connected to each other and display higher levels of individualism, which makes them value
independence, freedom of choice, and self-actualization.
According to the diffusion theory, modernisation originates in a melting pot of cultures, such
as cities. Cultural traits and phenomena gradually spread over to the more rural areas (Kroeber,
1963). As such, a cultural lag can be expected between urban and rural areas (Ogburn, 1950).
References
Allport, G.W. (1954). The Nature of Prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Beutel, A.M & Marini, M.(1995). Gender and Values. American Sociological Review, 60 (3): 436-448.
Hyman, H.H. and Wright, C.R. (1979). Education’s Lasting Influence on Values. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press.
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Inglehart, R. (1977). The Silent Revolution: Changing Values and Political Styles among Western
European Publics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Inglehart, R. (1997). Modernization and Postmodernization. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University
Press.
Kroeber, A.L. (1963). Anthropology, Culture Patterns and Processes. New York: Burlingame.
Ogburn, W.F. (1950). Social Change with Respect to Culture and Original Nature. New York: Viking
Press.
Tonniës, F. ([1887] 1955). Community and Association, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the
views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made
of the information contained therein.