Values
Analysis of the World Values Survey data by Inglehart and Welzel asserts that there are two major dimensions of cross-cultural variation in the world:
x-axis: Survival values versus self-expression values
y-axis: Traditional values versus secular-rational values.[3]
The map is a chart in which countries are positioned based on their scores for the two values mapped on the x-axis (survival values versus self-expression values) and the y-axis (traditional values versus secular-rational values).[3] The map shows where societies are located in these two dimensions. Clusters of countries reflect their shared values and not geographical closeness.[3]
Traditional values emphasize the importance of religion, parent-child ties, deference to authority, absolute standards and traditional family values. People who embrace these values also reject divorce, abortion, euthanasia and suicide. Societies that embrace these values have high levels of national pride and a nationalistic outlook.[3]
Secular-rational values have the opposite preferences to the traditional values. Societies that embrace these values place less emphasis on religion, traditional family values and authority. Divorce, abortion, euthanasia and suicide are seen as relatively acceptable.[3]
The shift from traditional to secular-rational values has been described by Engelbrekt and Nygren as "essentially the replacement of religion and superstition with science and bureaucracy as the basis of behaviour and authority relations in a society".[5]
Survival values place emphasis on economic and physical security.[3] They are linked with a relatively ethnocentric outlook and low levels of trust and tolerance.
Self-expression values give high priority to subjective well-being, self-expression and quality of life.[3] Some values more common in societies that embrace these values include environmental protection, growing tolerance of foreigners, gays and lesbians and gender equality, rising demands for participation in decision-making in economic and political life (autonomy and freedom from central authority), interpersonal trust, political moderation, and a shift in child-rearing values from emphasis on hard work toward imagination and tolerance.[3]
The shift from survival to self-expression also represents the transition from industrial society to post-industrial society, as well as embracing democratic values.[3][6]