Cultural values may have become more different globally but more similar regionally over the past 40 years, a new study has found.
Joshua Conrad Jackson, assistant professor of behavioral science and PhD student Danila Medvedev, both of the University of Chicago, suggest that, over time, high-income Western countries have grown increasingly culturally distinct from other world regions.
Meanwhile, countries in the same regions of the world have developed more similar cultural values.
For the study, the researchers analyzed data from the World Values Survey, which includes more than 400,000 people from 76 countries. The data spanned from 1981 to 2022.
They measured cultural variation for 40 specific values, the majority of which were linked to openness, obedience and faith. The authors also measured the similarity in values between countries over this period.
They found evidence for global divergence in cultural values—such as the importance of children learning religious beliefs—but they also found a convergence among countries in the same region.
For example, decades ago, views on divorce and disobedient children were equally disapproving in both Australia and Pakistan. In recent years, however, Australians' views towards divorce and disobedient children have softened, but views in Pakistan have hardened.
Meanwhile, high-income countries in East Asia, such as South Korea and Singapore, shared more cultural values than high-income but geographically distant countries like New Zealand and the Netherlands.
The study found values emphasizing tolerance and self-expression have diverged most sharply, especially between high-income Western countries and the rest of the world.
Countries with similar per-capita GDP levels were also found to have held similar values over the last 40 years.
Traditional theories on modernization suggested that globalization would lead to a convergence of cultural and social values, particularly regarding personal rights and freedoms, the authors highlight.
However, the research suggests that globalization, mass media and the spread of technology have not necessarily resulted in the merging of such values.
Instead, the study found wealth to be the strongest indicator of value similarity across nations over time. High-income countries share values with other high-income countries, while poor countries share values with poor countries.
Additionally, wealth may have different effects on cultural values in different regions. For example, the increase in wealth per person has been similar in Hong Kong and Canada between 2000 and 2020, but the acceptance of homosexuality has increased at a faster rate in Canada.
Moreover, the importance of child work ethic has decreased in Canada but has increased in Hong Kong.
Religion also emerged as a robust predictor of value similarity. Countries with more similar religious profiles have more similar values, even when taking into account their similarity in wealth, geographic position, and other geopolitical features.
The full findings of the study were published in the journal Springer Nature.
Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about culture? Let us know via science@newsweek.com.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
