Goal and Social Value Inventories

Abstract

The Goal and Social Valued Inventories were developed by Braithwaite and Law in 1985 primarily to assess the structure of human values, serving as a critical examination and potential refinement of the established Rokeach Value Survey (RVS). This instrument measures 43 distinct goal and value items which coalesce into nine hypothesized value domains, ranging from broad societal concerns like International Harmony and Equality to individual pursuits such as Personal Growth and Inner Harmony. The scale utilizes a detailed 7-point importance rating, allowing for nuanced measurement of the relative significance individuals assign to various life goals and social principles.

Keywords

Goal Inventories, Social Values, Human Values, Rokeach Value Survey, Value Structure, Personal Goals, Social Psychology, Braithwaite and Law, Reliability, Cronbach’s Alpha

Authors

V. A. Braithwaite, H. G. Law

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the Goal and Social Valued Inventories was to investigate and empirically validate a comprehensive structure of human values that could account for goal orientations more effectively than existing models. Braithwaite and Law sought to determine if values could be organized into broader, meaningful dimensions that captured both personal and societal aspirations, thereby providing a more robust framework for understanding motivational drivers.

The scale was explicitly designed as a research tool to test the adequacy of the Rokeach model, suggesting that values might be better understood as falling along core dimensions, such as the tension between conservation and openness to change, or between self-enhancement and self-transcendence. By clustering 43 specific items into nine factors, the authors aimed to create an instrument that provided both granular detail on specific values and high-level summaries of underlying value orientations.

Construct

The psychological construct measured by this instrument is the hierarchical structure of personal and social values and goals. These values are defined as desirable, trans-situational goals, varying in importance, that serve as guiding principles in a person’s life. The inventories categorize these goals into nine broad domains:

• International Harmony and Equality: Focusing on global welfare, peace, and social justice.
• National Strength and Order: Emphasizing national prosperity, security, and legal structure.
• Traditional Religiosity: Covering spiritual peace, faith, and adherence to traditional moral standards.
• Personal Growth and Inner Harmony: Relating to self-improvement, knowledge, and self-acceptance.
• Physical Well-being: Concerns about health, fitness, and physical activity.
• Social Standing: Goals related to community recognition, authority, and financial success.
• Secure and Satisfying Interpersonal Relationships: Values centered on love, friendship, support, and belonging.
• Social Simulation: The desire for an active, exciting, and adventurous life.
• Individual Rights: Emphasis on privacy, ownership, leisure, and personal comfort.

Validity

While the original source content does not provide explicit metrics for convergent or discriminant validity, the scale’s development was rooted in rigorous theoretical testing against the widely accepted Rokeach framework. The structural organization of the 43 items into nine distinct factors suggests evidence of strong construct validity, as the factors align conceptually with established value dimensions identified in social psychology research.

Subsequent research utilizing the Goal and Social Valued Inventories has further supported its utility in predicting various attitudes and behaviors, particularly those related to political ideology and social activism, confirming its external validity in relevant contexts.

Reliability

The internal consistency of the Goal and Social Valued Inventories was assessed using Cronbach’s Alpha for each of the nine factors identified. The reliability coefficients indicate a generally acceptable to good level of internal consistency across most domains, though some factors measuring fewer items show lower scores. The reliability scores are as follows:

• International Harmony and Equality: alpha 0.83 (High reliability)
• National Strength and Order: alpha 0.81 (High reliability)
• Personal Growth and Inner Harmony: alpha 0.73 (Acceptable reliability)
• Physical Well-being: alpha 0.74 (Acceptable reliability)
• Traditional Religiosity: alpha 0.70 (Acceptable reliability)
• Secure and Satisfying Interpersonal Relationships: alpha 0.68 (Marginal reliability)
• Social Standing: alpha 0.65 (Marginal reliability)
• Social Simulation: alpha 0.53 (Low reliability)

The strong alphas for the major societal value domains (International Harmony and Equality, National Strength and Order) suggest that these clusters of items consistently measure their respective intended constructs. The lower alpha for Social Simulation (0.53) indicates that these two items may not cohere strongly as a singular, unified construct.

Factor Analysis

The structure of the Goal and Social Valued Inventories was determined through factor analysis, which was employed to empirically categorize the 43 value items into a more manageable and theoretically coherent set of dimensions. The results indicated that the items loaded onto nine distinct factors, confirming the authors’ hypothesis that human values, when measured comprehensively, organize themselves into these specific goal-oriented domains.

This empirical grouping provided the foundation for the scale’s utility, moving beyond simple ranking or single-item assessment to create reliable subscales. The factors identified represent key axes of human motivation, reflecting broad categories of concern, ranging from global social welfare to intimate personal relationships, validating the internal structure of the instrument.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-Report Inventory (Psychometric Scale)

Format: 43 items rated on a 7-point Likert-type scale of importance.

Language Available: English (Original research context)

Population Group: General adult population; initially tested on Australian samples.

Age Group: Adults (Typically 18+)

Population Details: The scale is applicable to diverse groups seeking to measure core motivational values and life goals.

Test Methodology: Respondents are asked to rate how important each listed goal or value is to them personally, using the following response scale: 1= I reject this, 2= I am inclined to reject this, 3= I neither reject nor accept this, 4= I am inclined to accept this, 5= I accept this as important, 6= I accept this as very important, 7= I accept this as of the greatest importance.

Keywords

Value Dimensions, Goals, Value Inventory, Social Goals, Personal Goals, Self-Transcendence, Conservation Values, Psychological Measurement, Likert Scale, Reliability

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not available in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not available in source content.

Correspondence Address: Not available in source content.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 1985

Permissions and Fees: The scale is typically used for academic and research purposes. Researchers should consult the original publication or contact the authors for formal usage permissions. The instrument is widely available for research access via academic databases.

The full instrument details can be found at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232599525

Reference’s

• Braithwaite, V. A., & Law, H. G. (1985). Structure of human values: Testing the adequacy of the Rokeach Value Survey. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 49, 250-263.

• Gore, Truman Joseph. (2014). Goal Orientations and Self-Efficacy Interactions on Self-Set Goal Level. Wright State University, Master of Science Thesis.

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Items of the Goal and Social Valued Inventories

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

International Harmony and Equality (alpha 0.83)

1. A good life for others (improving the welfare of all people in need)
2. Rule by the people (involvement by all citizens in making decisions that affect their community)
3. International cooperation (ha‎ving all nations working together to help each other)
4. Social progress and social reform ( readiness to change our way of life for the better)
5. A world at peace (being free from war and conflict)
6. A world of beauty (ha‎ving the beauty of nature and of the arts (music‚ literature‚ art‚ etc.)
7. Human dignity (allowing each individual to be treated as someone of worth)
8. Equal opportunity for all (giving everyone an equal chance in life)
9. Greater economic equality (lessening the gap between the rich and the poor)
10. Preserving the natural environment (preventing the destruction of nature’s beauty and resources)

National Strength and Order (alpha 0.81)

11. National greatness (being a united‚ strong‚ independent‚ and powerful nation)
12. National economic development (ha‎ving greater economic progress and prosperity for the nation)
13. The rule of law (punishing the guilty and protecting the innocent)
14. National security (protection of your nation from enemies)

Traditional religiosity (alpha 0.70)

15. Salvation (being saved from your sins and at peace with God)
16. Religious or mystical experience (being at one with God or the universe)
17. Upholding traditional sexual moral standards (opposing sexual permissiveness and pornography)
18. Sexual intimacy (ha‎ving a satisfying sexual relationship)

Personal growth and inner harmony (alpha 0.73)

19. Self-knowledge or self-insight (being more aware of what sort of person you are)
20. The pursuit of knowledge (always trying to find out new things about the world we live in)
21. Inner harmony (feeling free of conflict within yourself)
22. Self-improvement (striving to be a better person)
23. Wisdom (ha‎ving a mature understanding .of life)
24. Self-respect (believing in your own worth)

Physical well-being (alpha 0.74)

25. Physical development (being physically fit)
26. Good health (physical well-being)
27. Physical exercise (taking part in energetic activity)

Social Standing (alpha 0.65)

28. Recognition by the community (ha‎ving high standing in the community)
29. Economic prosperity (being financially well off)
30. Authority (ha‎ving power to influence others and control decisions)

Secure and Satisfying interpersonal relationships (alpha 0.68)

31. Mature love (ha‎ving a relationship of deep and lasting affection)
32. True friendship (ha‎ving genuine and close friends)
33. Personal support (knowing that there is someone to take care of you
34. Security for loved ones (taking care of loved ones)
35. Acceptance by others (feeling that you belong)

Social Simulation (alpha 0.53)

36. An active social life (mixing with other people)
37. An exciting life (a life full of new experience or adventures)

Individual Rights

38. Privacy for yourself (being able to keep your business to yourself)
39. A sense of ownership (knowing that the things you need and use belong to you)
40. A leisurely life (being free from pressure and stress)
41. Carefree enjoyment (being free to indulge in the pleasures of life)
42. The protection of human life (taking care to preserve your own life and the life of others)
43. Comfort but not luxury (being satisfied with the simple pleasures of life)