Multiple Value Circles: The Moderating Role of Value Schemas in Cross-Cultural Contexts

Schwartz’s value indicators have been widely used as either a measure of ‘personal identity’ or a proxy for measuring ‘culture’ focusing on general psychological tendencies. Since values are shaped by interactions between personal (but socially constructed) characteristics and shared cultural understandings, there is a critical need to improve quantitative modeling of these values that engage the two different levels – individual and collective. Using Schwartz’s value indicators (e.g., self-enhancement, self-transcendences, openness to change, conservation), this research conducts Correlational Class Analysis to inductively identify value schemas, which I suggest as a proper unit of culture, different from simple ratings on these indicators. Analyzing the samples of World Value Survey from the South Korea and the United States, the findings show that (1) there are three distinct types of value schemas in each country with some cross-cultural similarities and differences; (2) value indicators are generally associated with attitudinal and behavioral outcomes, but more importantly, such associations vary by the types of value schemas that individuals hold; (3) the patterns of the moderating effects of value schemas are different between the two countries. With distinct measures of identity and culture, this study proposes a fuller model of values at two different levels to effectively address cross-cultural similarities and differences in their associations with stratification and attitudinal/behavioral outcomes.