1. Introduction
Values have an intangible nature. Their study is a complex issue because they are not observable or able to be measured and because they are often mixed with other psychosocial phenomena and present historical and cultural variability in relation to content (
Araújo et al. 2020). Thus, the term value can connote a wide variety of meanings and different interpretations (
Ives and Kidwell 2019). Values play a central role in the lives of individuals and cultures/societies and can be characterized either at the individual or group level, i.e., members of a society, organizations, religious groups. Collective/social values, also known as cultural values, represent the objectives that members of a society are encouraged to adhere to and pursue in order to justify their actions (
Sagiv et al. 2017). In turn, individual values, also named personal values, are the principles that rule our lives, guiding, conditioning, and directing behaviors, actions, and attitudes.
Throughout human history and evolution, religion has been found to be one of the most important and comprehensive social institutions, touching and shaping virtually all spheres of culture and society (
Ives and Kidwell 2019;
Nascimento et al. 2017), providing people with frames of reference for the organization of life in general, whether individual or group, through its mysteries, and existential and metaphysical questions about the absolute beginnings, and ultimate ends (
Nascimento and Roazzi 2017).
Religiosity and values play a crucial role in the history of human civilization, since the past until today, religious differences based on values substantially contribute to social conflicts (
Musek 2017). Thus, the search for values related to religion is a relevant task in psychology and other social sciences (
Leite et al. 2020). These two constructs are correlated; however, it is not clear whether this is because certain values predispose someone to become and remain religious or if religious people are more likely to adopt these values (
Chan et al. 2020). It is well known that the religious groups that individuals join and the extent of their religiosity are important aspects both in personal and social identity (
Sagiv et al. 2017). It can be concluded that religiosity and values are intrinsically related in all aspects of human life).
4. Results
The descriptive statistics of Schwartz’s scale of motivational values and second order allows to conclude that item 18 “It is important to be loyal and dedicated to friends and close people”, presents the lowest average of all items, which means that is the item answered by most of the respondents. On the contrary, item 2 “It is important to be rich, to have money and expensive things” is the one with the highest average, being the one less reported by the participants. The “Not like me” answer modality is the most chosen of all modalities in item 2, meaning that for 53.2% of the respondents it is not important to have a lot of money and expensive things. The “Not like me” answer modality is also the least chosen in item 18, meaning that more than 70% of the respondents consider themselves to be loyal and dedicated people to the nearest ones.
Respecting the description of the subscales of motivational values and second-order values, benevolence presents itself with a lower average value registered, in contrast to power. Regarding second-order values, self-transcendence appears as the dimension with the lowest average, meaning that it is the highest-order value that is most represented in the sample. Concerning the reliability of these dimensions, the values of alpha of Cronbach in motivational values range between 0.25 (power) and 0.69 (benevolence), the remaining values being as follows: achievement (0.67); hedonism (0.64); universalism and stimulation (0.60); security (0.55); conformity (0.51); self-direction (0.46); and tradition (0.38). Regarding the reliability of the highest-order values, they range between self-promotion (0.54) and self-transcendence (0.74), presenting openness to change (0.70) and conservation (0.65) intermediate values.
Some subscales of the motivational and second-order values scale have very low internal consistency values. As verified by the authors of the scale, on average, in the samples of several studies, power is the item with the lowest Cronbach’s alpha value. In this study, benevolence has the highest value, while the authors of the original version (
Granjo and Peixoto 2013;
Schwartz 2011) recorded the highest value in achievement.
The descriptive statistics of the items related to religion allows to verify that in relation to the question “How religious are you?”, responses focus on options between 5 and 8 (with 5 including 268 respondents and 8 including 156). The response modalities “Less frequently” and “Never” are the most frequent responses in relation to the question “How often do you attend religious services, in addition to special occasions?”. With regard to the question “How many times do you pray apart from religious cults?”, the answers focus on “Every day” and “Never”, according to
Table 2.
It was found that the female gender (M = 6.20; SD = 2.75) has a higher religious identity (t (1266) = −9.632; p < 0.010) than the male gender (M = 4.66; SD = 2.89). Moreover, the female gender (M = 4.73; SD = 1.76) has a higher frequency of religious celebrations (t (1191, 857) = 7.253; p < 0.010) than the male gender (M = 5.43; SD = 1.63). In addition, the female gender (M = 2.83; SD = 2.29) prays more (t (1078, 728) = 13.084; p < 0.010) than the male gender (M = 4.62; SD = 2.49). Age correlates positively with religious identity (r = 0.310; p < 0.010) and negatively with the number of times the person prays (r = −0.368; p < 0.010) and the number of times the person attends religious celebrations (r = −0.260; p < 0.010), i.e., older participants have a more frequent religious practice than younger ones, as well as a greater religious identity than these.
The correlations between religious variables oscillate between
r = 0.580 (
p < 0.001) and
r = 0.645 (
p < 0.001), which explains the absence of multicollinearity. If it is above 0.8, there is multicollinearity (
Kumar 1975).
Concerning the correlations between the dimensions of the PVQ (first- and second-order values) and the sociodemographic variables, highlighting the highest correlations, it was verified, in relation to the first order variables, that conformity correlates significantly, negatively with age (r = −0.205) and positively with the number of years of education (r = 0.300). These results mean that the older respondents have higher conformity values since on the scale of the values, lower value responses translate higher scores (1 = “much like me” and 6 = “nothing like me”). Similarly, respondents with more years of education show less conformity. Tradition also correlates significantly and positively with education (r = 0.273), i.e., the higher the education, the lower the scores in tradition. Achievement is positively correlated with age (r = 0.210). Thus, the older the respondents, the lower the achievement value is reported. Hedonism and stimulation correlate significantly and positively with age (r = 0.311; r = 0.324), meaning that respondents of higher ages show lower results in these dimensions. In addition, stimulation is negatively correlated with education (r = −0.211), meaning that higher education corresponds to greater stimulation.
In relation to second-order variables, and to partially respond to H1 (older participants are expected to have higher self-transcendence and conservation values than younger participants), Pearson’s correlation was calculated and it was found that conservation correlates negatively with age (r = −0.220), confirming H1, and with work activity (rs = −0.220) and positively with education (r = 0.322). Thus, conservation is shown to be greater in respondents at an older age and also greater in inactive ones, when compared to those active in labor terms, being lower when education is higher. On the other hand, openness to change is positively correlated with age (r = 0.342) and work activity (rs = 0.210) and negatively with education (r = −0.253). In this case, older and more active respondents show less openness to change and those with more education express greater openness to change. However, age does not correlate with self-transcendence (r = 0.044).
Responding to the second part of
H1 (female participants are expected to have higher self-transcendence and conservation values than male participants and in turn, the latter are expected to present the highest order values self-promotion and openness to change), the Student’s
t-test was used. In
Table 3, the gender differences in relation to second-order values are presented. There are no differences in relation to self-promotion; the female gender values self-transcendence and conservation more than the male gender and males value openness to change more than females.
To answer
H2 (it is expected that there are significant associations between religious variables and Schwartz’s values), Spearman’s correlation was determined and it was verified that the religious identity “How religious are you?” correlates above
r = 0.200, significantly and negatively with conformity, tradition, and conservation. These results mean that respondents who express more religiosity subscribe to higher values in conformity, tradition, and conservation (
Table 4). Regarding religious practice “How often do you attend religious services, in addition to special occasions?” and “How many times do you pray apart from religious cults?” correlate above
r = 0.200, significantly and positively with conformity, tradition, and conservation. These results mean that respondents who show less religious practice subscribe to lower values in conformity, tradition, and conservation (
Table 4).
Self-promotion showed no correlation with religious items; therefore, it was not possible to find a model that could explain it (
Table 4). The correlations between self-transcendence and religious variables were very low and, therefore, when trying to estimate an explanatory model, the results were not acceptable (
Table 4).
Intending to answer
H3 (it is expected that age, religious identity, and religious practice explain the second-order variables of Schwartz, i.e., conservation and openness to change), MLR analysis was carried out with a view to knowing the sociodemographic and independent variables that explain conservation. In the two MLR for the second-order dimensions conservation and openness to change (
Table 5,
Table 6,
Table 7 and
Table 8), all sociodemographic variables were included in a first model and, in a second model, all three religious variables. Most of the sociodemographic variables were not found to be significant (
Table 5 and
Table 7), and the models presented in
Table 6 and
Table 8 include only those variables that were found to be significant in explaining the variance of the dependent variables. In the first MLR of conservation, the variable children living at home did not enter the regression model because it did not correlate significantly with the dependent variable conservation (
Table 5). In this first MLR, the second model found was significant (
F(13, 639) = 10.435;
p < 0.001; Adjusted
R2 = 0.158), however, many of the independent variables did not significantly contribute to the model. As the non-significant variables were removed from the model, by decreasing order of non-significance, it was found that age, religious identity, and an item of religious practice “How many times do you pray apart from religious cults?” are those that significantly contribute to explain 13.9% of the variance of the second-order dimension conservation (
Table 6). The second model of this MLR was found to be significant (
F(3, 1229) = 67.279;
p < 0.001; Adjusted
R2 = 0.139).
In order to answer
H3, MLR analysis was carried out aiming to know the sociodemographic and independent variables that explain the openness to change. The procedures carried out for the MLR described above were repeated for openness to change. In the first MLR of openness to change, the variable children living at home did not enter the regression model because it did not correlate significantly with the dependent openness to change variable (
Table 7). In this first MLR, the second model found was significant (
F(13, 644) = 5.960;
p < 0.001; adjusted
R2 = 0.089), however, many of the independent variables did not significantly contribute to the model. As the non-significant variables were removed from the model, by decreasing order of non-significance, it was found that age and religious practice, “How often do you attend religious services, in addition to special occasions?”, are those that significantly contribute to explain 12.2% of the variance of the second-order dimension openness to change (
Table 8). The second model of this MLR was found to be significant (
F(2, 1240) = 87.650;
p < 0.001; adjusted
R2 = 0.122).
5. Discussion
Using socio-demographic information, human values, and religious variables from the ESS database, Round 8 (
European Social Survey Round 8 Data 2016), this study intended to understand the contribution of religious variables to the explanation of Schwartz’s human values in the Portuguese population. The specific objectives included relating the sample to religious and psychological variables (Schwartz’s values) and to identify an explanatory model of the second-order values of Schwartz (self-transcendence, conservation, self-promotion, and openness to change).
The female gender has a higher religious identity than the male gender. Furthermore, the female gender presents a frequency of religious celebrations which is more assiduous than the male gender. Moreover, the female gender prays more than the male. Age correlates positively with religious identity and negatively with the number of times a person prays and the number of times attending religious celebrations, i.e., older participants have a more frequent religious practice than younger ones and a greater religious identity than younger ones. These results corroborate studies previously carried out in this domain, such as the ones carried out by
Heelas et al. (
2005) and
Trzebiatowska and Bruce (
2013), which prove that the female gender is more involved and interested in institutional religion and spirituality than the male gender.
Trzebiatowska and Bruce (
2012) confirmed that women in Western nations attend church more, pray more daily, are baptized and confirmed, read scriptures, report religious experiences, watch religious TV programs, express greater belief in God, believe in the afterlife, and describe religion as personally important, when compared to men. In addition, and according to
Heelas et al. (
2005) and
Trzebiatowska and Bruce (
2013), participation in holistic spiritual activities, and non-materialistic beliefs, in the United Kingdom, are more prevalent in women than in men. In fact, female individuals are more religious and believers than male ones (
Luria and Katz 2019).
As for the importance attributed to religiosity and spirituality among different age groups, the study by
Robinson et al. (
2019), carried out in 3 different countries, United Kingdom, France, and Germany, shows that the group of older individuals presents greater religiosity than younger participants. Moreover, the study by
Khukhlaev et al. (
2018), carried out with young Russians from 3 different religious groups, Orthodox Christians, Buddhists, and Muslims, demonstrates the same when considering that believing individuals are often represented by the older generations. Believers are also more committed to values. According to
Amado and Diniz (
2017) and
Leite et al. (
2020), age is positively correlated with the importance attributed to religion and its practice.
In terms of gender, differences were found in relation to second-order values. The female gender values self-transcendence, in agreement with
Francescato et al. (
2017) and conservation, which is corroborated by
Lönnqvist et al. (
2018), stating that becoming a parent changes the values of women, but not men, and new mothers’ value priorities shift towards conservation over openness to change. The male gender values openness to change more, since there are no differences regarding self-promotion.
With respect to
H1 (older and female participants are expected to have higher self-transcendence and conservation values than younger and male participants, and in turn, the latter are expected to present the highest order values self-promotion and openness to change), it was found that age negatively correlates with conservation, confirming
H1, and positively with openness to change. However, age does not correlate with self-transcendence. The literature is not consensual with these results.
Schwartz (
2003) demonstrated that age has strong positive correlations with conservation values (conformity, tradition, and security), weak positive correlations with self-transcendence (universalism and benevolence) and negative correlations with hedonism, stimulation (values that belong to the openness to change), and realization (this value belongs to self-promotion). With regard to age, and as the study by
Knafo and Schwartz (
2009) demonstrates, several studies carried out with populations from different countries all come to demonstrate that older people value values related to conservation and self-transcendence more. In turn, young people value more values of self-promotion and openness to change. In terms of gender, and with regard to second-order values, men prioritize values of self-promotion, opposite to the results in this study, where no differences were found in relation to gender in this value, and openness to change, consensual to the obtained results, while women value more values of self-transcendence, confirming the results of this study. However, in relation to conservation, the literature points out that among women and men, this value differs less, although the female gender, in contrast to the male gender, favors tradition and security a little more (
Schwartz 2012).
Concerning
H2 (it is expected that there are significant associations between religious variables and Schwartz’s values), it was found that religious identity, “How religious are you?”, correlates significantly and negatively with conformity, tradition, and conservation. These results mean that respondents who express more religiosity subscribe to higher values in conformity, tradition, and conservation. With reference to religious practice “How often do you attend religious services, in addition to special occasions?”, it correlates significantly and positively with conformity, tradition, and conservation. These results suggest that respondents who show less religious practice identify less with the values of conformity, tradition, and conservation.
Schwartz and Huismans (
1995) found that religiosity of individuals with Orthodox Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish religion, correlates positively with the values of tradition, conformity, and security, and negatively with values of power, achievement, hedonism, stimulation, and self-direction. Other studies in this area, such as the one by
Saroglou et al. (
2004), showed that religiosity was highly associated with conservation values, and was little related to self-directed values, i.e., religious people tend to favor values that promote perseverance of the social and individual order (conformity, tradition, and, to a lesser extent, security), and on the other hand, they dislike values that promote openness to change.
In regard to
H3 (it is expected that age, religious identity, and religious practice explain the second-order variables of Schwartz, i.e., conservation and openness to change), it was found that age, religious identity, and an item of religious practice, “How many times do you pray apart from religious cults?”, are those that significantly contribute to explaining 13.9% of the variance of the second-order conservation dimension. That is, being older, assuming a high religious identity, and praying outside religious cults explain the value of second-order conservation. It is also found that age and religious practice, “How often do you attend religious services, in addition to special occasions?”, are those that significantly contribute to explaining 12.2% of the variance of the second-order dimension openness to change, i.e., the openness to change is explained by a younger age and the low or no frequency of religious services.
Saroglou et al. (
2004) showed that religious people highly classify the values that promote self-transcendence and conservation. In turn,
Pereira (
2019) claim that the religious system correlates with second-order values of conservation.
Schwartz (
2012) found that the religiousness index of adolescents from the main Western religious groups, i.e., Roman Catholics, Protestants, Eastern Orthodox, Muslims, Jews, correlate positively with conservation values. In addition, a study by Saroglou and
Muñoz-García (
2008) found that the values explained 22% of the variance of religiosity and 12% of the variance of spirituality.
6. Conclusions
The aim of this study was to understand the contribution of religious variables to the explanation of Schwartz’s human values in a representative sample of the Portuguese population. Specific objectives included correlating the sample to religious and psychological variables (Schwartz’s values) and identifying an explanatory model of the second-order values of Schwartz (self-transcendence, conservation, self-promotion, and openness to change). Older and female participants were expected to present higher self-transcendence and conservation values than younger and male participants, which was confirmed. In turn, the latter were expected to present the highest order values self-promotion and openness to change, which was also confirmed.
It was also expected that there would be significant associations between religious variables and Schwartz’s values, which was partially confirmed, i.e., respondents who express more religiosity subscribe to higher values in conformity, tradition, and conservation and respondents who show less religious practice subscribe to lower values in conformity, tradition, and conservation. However, very low correlations were found between religious and self-transcendence variables and no significant correlations were found between religious and self-promotion variables. Finally, it was expected that age, religious identity, and religious practice would explain the second-order variables of Schwartz, i.e., conservation and openness to change, which was confirmed. Age contributed to explaining the variances of the two second-order variables; one item related to religious practice contributed to explain conservation and one item about religious practice and another item about religious identity contributed to explain openness to change.
In summary, these results seem to suggest some autonomy of human motivational values and second-order values in relation to religiosity (identity and practice). In fact, most Portuguese consider themselves to be a religious person, however, their religiosity seems to have little impact on their human values. This can be, in part, somewhat related with
Grace Davie’s (
1990) thesis, i.e., the traditional relationship between human values and religiosity is experiencing a transformation. However, this transformation does not mean that an evident secularization is happening. On the contrary, people believe without belonging, which is a result of a significant religious pluralism that is increasing all over the world and, particularly, in Europe. Alongside, these results agree with
Oliver Roy’s (
2014) thesis, advocating a pure religion and a separation between religion and culture. According to this author, since religion was not concerned with society, then there is no more a quest for synthesis or integration of religion and culture. In order to achieve a more comprehensive explanation, future research should further explore this relation between religiosity and human values using different religious questions, e.g., religious beliefs and representations, other than the religious identity and the religious practice.