Is there a sociodemographic model of acceptance of postmaterialist values?: The case of Serbia

Abstract

The paper offers an analysis of the factors of acceptance of postmaterialist values in Serbia. In accordance with the assumptions of Inglehart's postmaterialist value theory, but also on the basis of empirical works of his critics, the correlation between postmaterialist values and four sociodemographic variables: age, level of education, level of family income and population size of settlement, was analyzed. The data, collected in a 2007 public opinion research including 1410 citizens of Serbia aged 15-89, indicate that all the analyzed factors are important, but that age is the best predictor of these values. The conclusion discusses the adequacy of generation hypothesis as a mechanism of changing predominant values in a society and the explanatory power of the analyzed sociodemographic model

Value Orientations of Highly Educated Migrants from Serbia

“…Authoritarianism is a cognitive trait that arises on the basis of learned concepts that are prevalent in certain cultures or subcultures and presents a refl ection of the current conditions in which an individual is found because it is rational for the individual to be directed to power and to be obedient to the authorities in certain social circumstances (Greenstein 1987). Results gained in our research, which show that our sample characterizes a low level of authoritarianism, are in accordance with Inglehart's theory and his postmatialistic approach (Inglehart 1971;Inglehart, Flanagan 1987;Abramson, Inglehart 1992;Inglehart, Abramson 1999;Inglehart, Baker 2000), where it is emphasized that the manifested secular-rational and self-expression values are a refl ection of a culture in which survival is certain, thus refl ecting anti-discrimination and humanistic tendencies, and resistance to traditional norms and externally imposed authority (Pavlović 2009).…”

“…Another author reached similar conclusions. Namely, in his research, on a representative sample of the Serbian population, Pavlović (2009) determined that 49% of respondents were characterised by materialistic values, and only 6% by postmaterialistic. Th ings are not diff erent when it comes to highly educated members ether, as the research conducted by Maksić and Pavlović (2012), based on data from the fourth wave of the EVS that was in Serbia conducted in 2008 on a representative sample shows.…”

“…Th e most important values then become social equality, participation in social decision making, greater freedom, self-expression and improvement of the quality of life (Davis, Davenport 1999). Changes in predominant views of the world caused by increasing levels of education, the spread of mass communications and information that increase the intellectual skills of people, lead to the material, intellectual and social autonomy of the individuals, resulting in a reassessment of authority over people and a tendency towards individual freedom and equality, and a shift from materialistic to postmaterialistic values (Inglehart, Welzel 2005;Pavlović 2009). Th e development of these values further contributes to changes in society, and changes in social, gender, religious and other norms (Inglehart, Abramson 1999;Davis, Devenport 1999).…”

Specific (Blocked) Post-socialist Union Transformation in Serbia

“…Very similar results have been demonstrated in other representative surveys carried out in Serbia and western Balkans (Pavlović, 2009, Pešić, 2009, Petrović, 2011. By investigating the materialist and post-materialist orientations, Pavlović (2009) arrived to the conclusion that around 47% of the respondents represented a mixture of both.…”

The limits of individualizing parenthood in Serbia: Study of gender socialization of children

“…Serbia's 2001 participation in the World Values Survey showed high esteem for the family, family authority and sacrifice for children. Moreover, it displayed a pattern of family attitudes and values based in an unreflective relationship to parent authority, an emphasis on diligence and responsibility as the most important personal characteristics, as well as a mild (in)acceptance of a different role for women (Pavlović 2007). A study of value systems within contemporary families in Serbia (Milić 2010) has showed that acceptance of modern attitudes is moderate, and that both men and women endeavor to maintain their traditional rights.…”