A Latent Class Analysis of Personal Values in Young Adults

• Main Authors: Avanté J. Smack, Kathrin Herzhoff, Rui Tang, Rheeda L. Walker, Jennifer L. Tackett
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of California Press 2017-12-01
• Series: Collabra: Psychology
• Subjects: Personal Values; Personality Traits; Racial Differences
• Online Access: https://www.collabra.org/articles/114

Human values and motivations are a powerful predictor of behavior, and Schwartz’s taxonomy offers a meaningful organizational system for robust value dimensions (Schwartz, 1992). Although values clearly represent a meaningful and culturally relevant dimension of individual differences, they remain poorly understood particularly in regards to how values co-occur and manifest within individuals. The purpose of the present study was to examine how values co-occur and manifest within individuals. A racially/ethnically diverse sample of 1, 308 undergraduate students (351 males, 'Mage '= 21.70, SD = 5.22) reported on their personal values and personality traits. Latent class analyses revealed support for two value classes: personal-focused (N = 210) and social-focused ('N' = 1098), which map onto hypotheses of value configurations based on Schwartz’s taxonomy (Schwartz, 1992). The value classes also exhibited differences based on racial/ethnic composition, gender composition, and personality trait association, also consistent with previous research. The current study provides evidence for two value types that manifest across two countries in North America.