McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2010 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
PERSONAL AND
ORGANIZATIONAL
VALUES
5
2
Learning Objectives
Define values.
Compare and contrast values and attitudes.
Explain the origins of your values.
Identify your personal values.
Define and explain value systems.
Discuss the role of integrity.
Identify strategies for coping with values
conflicts.
Apply values in a global context.
3
What Are Values
Values are the worth or importance attached
to different factors in one’s life.
Corporate culture is a system of shared
values throughout any given organization.
Differences in values give rise to conflicts
between employees.
4
Values Versus Attitudes
Attitudes are affected by values.
Values may be tangible or intangible.
Values are an important part of everyone’s
lives and organizations.
5
Where Values Come From
Personal values are formed in early
childhood and are affected strongly by the
values of parents and the child’s
environment.
Other important factors are religion, political
views, parents, socioeconomic class,
exposure to education, television, the
Internet, and other mass media.
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Where Values Come From
Daniel Yankelovich - Value patterns that
have emerged since the early 1970s:
– The nature of a person’s paid job is now more
significant.
– Leisure time is more valued.
– Americans now insist much more strongly that
jobs become less impersonal, and more human
and humane.
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Values can be placed in two categories.
– Terminal values that maintain a high priority
throughout one’s life.
– Instrumental values that reflect the ways one
prefers to behave.
Where Values Come From
10
Value Systems
Value systems are frameworks people use to
develop beliefs about themselves, others, and
how they should be treated.
Eduard Spranger defined six types of people
based on their types of value systems.
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Spranger’s six value systems:
– Theoretical person - Individual seeks to discover
truth.
– Economic person - Perceives useful things in life
as most important.
– Aesthetic person - Considers beauty, form, and
harmony as most important.
Value Systems
12
Spranger’s six value systems (cont.):
– Social person - Values and loves other people.
– Political animal - Is motivated by power; their
values center on influence, fame, and power.
– Religious person - Values unity highly, and tries to
understand the universe as a whole and relate to it
meaningfully.
Value Systems
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Graves’s seven value levels:
– Reaction
– Tribalism
– Egocentrism
– Conformity
– Achievement
– Social orientation
– Existentialism
Value Systems
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Another way to see values systems
– Pragmatism - The belief in the practicality of an
action, rather than in strong belief in the idea
behind that action.
– Humanism - A belief in the worth and dignity of all
people.
– Idealism - The belief in the importance of ideas
and thoughts.
Value Systems
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The Role of Integrity
Integrity is defined as soundness of moral
character.
Lately, the word has received a new
emphasis—especially as an element of trust.
According to Stephen Covey, people have
developed a focus on personality rather than
on character.
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The Role of Integrity
Personality ethic: Emphasis is placed on
being likable, making sure that you are
received well, and maintaining a positive
mental attitude.
Character ethic: Emphasis is placed on
principles, beliefs, and strong values rather
than upon the use of various surface
techniques.
17
Values Conflicts
Values conflicts occur when one set of values
clashes with another, and a decision has to
be made.
Interpersonal values conflicts
– Occur when people from differing backgrounds
having different value systems have to work
together.
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Personal versus group values
– Often involve a clash between the individual and
the group.
Internal values conflicts
– Occur when people themselves want two different
outcomes that contradict each other.
– Could lead to cognitive dissonance, the emotional
state that results from acting in ways that
contradict one’s beliefs or other actions.
Values Conflicts
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When you experience cognitive dissonance,
you might use any of these methods to make
them appear more consistent and to lessen
the stress caused:
– You can change your original beliefs.
– You can use denial.
– You can get into self-justification.
– You can change your own behavior.
Values Conflicts
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Values in an International Economy
People from other cultures define your values
by your behavior.
Areas of difference in values and in
perception of the values of others:
– Views of power and authority.
– Views of the individual versus the group.
– Tolerance for uncertainty.
– The value of punctuality.
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Strategies for Success
Redefining your personal values: The Rath
test:
– Did I choose this value freely, with no outside
pressure?
– Did I choose this value from several alternatives?
– Did I consider the consequences of my choice?
– Do I like and respect this value?
– Will I defend this value publicly?
– Will I base my behavior on this value?
– Do I find this value persistent throughout my life?
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Building a character ethic for integrity:
– Focus
– Respect
– Responsibility
– Pride
– Fairness and equity
– Trust and being trusted
Strategies for Success
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Summary
Corporate culture is a system of shared
values throughout any organization.
Attitudes are often affected by values.
Values systems are frameworks people use in
developing beliefs about themselves, others,
and how they should be treated.
Integrity, or soundness of moral character, is
an important part of any value system.
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