Conferences

Since the inception of the social sciences, scholars have been convinced of the theoretical and empirical usefulness of the concept ‘values’. Values can be seen as “desirable transsituational goals, varying in importance, that serve as guiding principles in the life of a person or other social entity (Schwartz 1994: 21). Despite its paramount importance, the value concept has not always received the scientific attention it might deserve. It is remarkable that certain aspects of value theory have been tested only very rarely.

In this contribution, we focus on the relation between religious involvement on the one hand, and value priorities on the other. There are several good theoretical reasons to expect that there indeed exists a link between religion and value systems. Through processes of socialization, religions influence the value systems of their adherents. An alternative explanation can be sought in self-selection processes: value priorities might also guide the choice to involve in a particular religion. Yet, we expect the relation between religious involvement and specific values to vary according to the cultural context. After all, the structural position a religion holds in society can have an effect on the specific values it is associated with. The religion-values connection is a highly relevant topic because it can provide deeper insight in what it exactly means to be a religious person, and how this meaning can differ along with the cultural setting.

This paper provides an empirical test of the connection between religious involvement and value patterns. This is done from a comparative perspective: using data from the first three rounds of the European Social Survey allows us to compare this relation across religious groups (including Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Christians, Muslims and Jews) in more than 30 European countries. This wide variety of cultural settings makes it possible to determine how various contextual factors shape the relation between religion and value priorities.