Value Orientations in a Family: a Socio-Psychological Analysis

Objective. Socio-psychological analysis of value orientations in the main subsystems of the modern family (marital, parent-child, sibling).
Background. The scientific literature notes methodological heterogeneity in the study of intra-family values with the actual request of practice to determine the consistency of value orientations in various subsystems of the family. This becomes especially relevant in the modern historical situation for a deeper understanding of the processes of value-semantic integration and differentiation within the family.
Study design. The differences in actual and reflexive values in the dyads of married couples, parents and children, and siblings were investigated. The validity of differences was tested using statistical criteria for comparing mean (Student, Wilcoxon, Mann-Whitney). To analyze pairwise similarity, correlations of value profiles (po-Spearman, r-Pearson), indices of value-orientation congruence in actual (VOC-A) and reflective (VOC-R) assessments were calculated.
Participants. The study included 4 samples: married couples (n = 58 couples), college youth (n = 193; 44,6% males; 55,4% females), 3 generations of women from the same family (n = 20 triads), and respondents with a sibling (n = 63; 38% males; 62% females).
Measurements. The method “Value orientations-36” (modification of Sh. Schwartz's method) (Kunitsyna, 2005). In the sample of couples and three generations of women actual values were measured. In the sample of young people and respondents with siblings − actual (answers for themselves) and reflexive (young people answered for their mothers, and respondents for their siblings). Adapted PEA questionnaire (Volkova, 2006) to assess the quality of relationships in couples and siblings.
Results. The specificity of value orientations in family subsystems (marital, parent-child, sibling) was revealed. Thus, the differences in family couples reflect the persisting social perception of the division of marital roles: men value independence and self-assertion more, and women value interpersonal relations. Differences in children's actual and reflexive evaluations testify to the selective intergenerational continuity of value orientations in the family. In the three-generation sample, it was found that the dyads of mothers and daughters are closer to each other in terms of value profiles than grandmothers and granddaughters; the dyads of older and middle-generation women are most similar to each other. The values of value-orientation unity in the dyad are higher with higher satisfaction with the child's upbringing. Differences in the values of siblings are related to the values of achievement and ethical and aesthetic orientation. Profile correlations show the similarity of the general structure of values in all subsystems. The indices VOC-A and VOC-R express the degree of value integration in family dyads and are similar in content to the intercorrelations of individual value hierarchies.
Conclusions. In vertical (parent-child) and horizontal (marital and sibling) dyads, the similarity of value orientations is quite high. Comparison of the profiles of family dyads from unrelated samples allows us to speak about the general consistency and selective continuity of value orientations in the modern Russian family. The general orientation of value orientations of spouses, parents and children, and siblings is characterized, on the one hand, by a high importance of family values (in such aspects as the safety of relatives and trustworthiness of interpersonal relations), and, on the other hand, by a pronounced focus on independence and achievement. This configuration can be a source of contradictions and disunity of family members. At the same time, intergenerational and intragenerational cohesion is supported by the continuity of values of moral orientation and normative behavior, with no differences in all dyads.

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