I was talking with a colleague about some of the recent world events and she was taking one side over another. When I questioned why she felt as she did, she said, “I was born with these values and so was the rest of my family, that’s just who we are.” I found this very interesting because she is a very intelligent and well-educated person, yet she feels these were innate values that were passed on to her like DNA. If she felt this way, I am assuming many others may also feel this way and thought this would be a good place to discuss how we acquire our values.
What Are Our Values
In leadership and followership studies we talk about values quite a bit. We talk about our values as guiding us like electromagnetism draws a compass to “true North.” Values are especially important for leaders, liminal leader/followers, and followers when there are no laws, policies, procedures or previous practices or experiences to use as a guide. Values are the concepts, ideals and things that are important to us, such as life, honesty, or fairness. Shared values are necessary for establishing trust between leaders and followers. Instrumental values govern the way we pursue our goals and interact with others. Examples include fairness, courage, honesty, and responsibility. Terminal values are associated with goals or end states and include things like life, justice, liberty, and peace. And our values are central to the concept of character. So what is your character? Your character is what you would do or not do, even if it would never be known by anyone else. It’s who you are when nobody is looking. But where do those values come from? Are people born with certain values like my colleague said?
We Start with Nothing
People do not have established values when they are first born. Values, like many other behaviors such as primary speech, are learned and developed over time as individuals grow and interact with their environment, caregivers, and society. When babies are born, they have no pre-existing values, beliefs, or moral principles. They have very basic instincts and needs for survival, such as the need for food, comfort, and safety, but they do not possess a developed ethical or moral framework.
Albert Bandura, a Canadian-American psychologist who was the David Starr Jordan Professor Emeritus of Social Science in Psychology at Stanford University says, “As children grow and develop, they begin to absorb the values and beliefs of their families, cultures, and communities.”(Bandura, 2014) These values are typically passed down through socialization, education, and various life experiences. As individuals mature and gain cognitive and moral reasoning abilities, they start to form their own values, sometimes influenced by or in reaction to the values they have been exposed to.
Values are not inherent at birth but rather acquired and developed as a result of an individual’s interactions and experiences throughout their life. It is a dynamic and ongoing process that can evolve and change as people learn and grow.
How do people gain their values?
People gain their values through a complex interplay of factors, including their upbringing, cultural and societal influences, firsthand experiences, and individual reflections. Everything from family and upbringing to society, religion, education, friends, personal experiences, media, historical events, personal reflection, and even choosing one or more values.
Family and Upbringing: Family plays a significant role in shaping a person’s values. Children often absorb the values, beliefs, and moral principles of their parents and caregivers. Family environments can vary greatly, and the values passed down may be influenced by cultural, religious, or philosophical backgrounds.
Culture and Society: The broader cultural and societal context in which individuals live also plays a crucial role in shaping their values. Cultural norms, traditions, and societal expectations can heavily influence an individual’s ethical and moral beliefs.
Religion and Spirituality: Many people derive their values from religious or spiritual beliefs. Religious texts and teachings often provide a moral framework that guides followers’ values and behaviors.
Education: Formal education, including schools, universities, and other educational institutions, can shape values by teaching ethical principles, critical thinking, and encouraging the exploration of different perspectives.
Peer Groups: Friends, colleagues, and peer groups can have a significant impact on a person’s values. People often adopt the values and beliefs of those they associate with, and peer pressure can play a role in shaping ethical standards.
Personal Experiences: Life experiences, both positive and negative, can influence a person’s values. Encounters with adversity, injustice, or kindness can lead individuals to reevaluate and refine their values.
Media and Information: Mass media, including television, movies, the internet, and social media, can influence people’s values by promoting certain ideologies, lifestyles, or worldviews.
Philosophical Reflection: Some individuals actively engage in philosophical or ethical reflection, which can lead to the development of deeply considered values. Philosophers and thinkers throughout history have contributed to the formation of ethical frameworks that inspire people to examine and adopt certain values.
Historical and Political Events: Major historical and political events, such as wars, social movements, or changes in government, can shape values by highlighting issues of justice, equality, and human rights.
Personal Choice and Autonomy: Ultimately, individuals have the capacity to critically assess and choose their own values. They can evaluate the influences mentioned above and make independent decisions about what they believe is right or wrong.
Putting It All Together:
Although we are not born with values, beliefs, or moral principles, they are quickly absorbed into us like a sponge absorbs water from the time we are born. Because there are so many different influencing factors, values can vary widely from person to person, even within the same cultural or familial context. Likewise, people may adapt, evolve, or change their values over time in response to added information and life experiences. How we perceive the input of information through our five senses is very strongly influenced by our values. I always say, to change someone’s perception, you must provide new information or the same information in a different or new way. Additionally, we must understand that values can be deeply personal and may not always align with other individuals, their immediate social circles, or the values of the broader society. This is a huge part of the current conflicts we are facing in the world. But are we born with these values, no.
Author(s): Dr. Chris Fuzie
Board Insights | Open Source
Published Online: 2023 Nov – All Rights Reserved.
APA Citation: Fuzie, C. (2023, Nov 1). Am I Born with My Values? The Journal of Leaderology and Applied Leadership. https://jala.nlainfo.org/am-i-born-with-my-values/
References:
Bandura, A. (2014). Social cognitive theory of moral thought and action. In Handbook of moral behavior and development (pp. 69-128). Psychology press.