Self-Assessment
Personal Values Assessment
Discover which values guide your life. This assessment measures your priorities across 10 universal human values based on decades of cross-cultural research.
Research-based tool · Based on Schwartz's Theory of Basic Values
What Are Personal Values?
Values are the guiding principles that shape your decisions, goals, and what you find meaningful. Psychologist Shalom Schwartz identified 10 basic values that appear across cultures worldwide.
Values Form a Circle
Adjacent values (like Benevolence and Universalism) tend to go together, while opposite values (like Power and Benevolence) often conflict. Your results will show where you fall on this spectrum.
How to answer: For each statement, rate how much it sounds like you. There are no right or wrong answers. Your results show your relative priorities, not whether you're "good" at any particular value.
Your Values Profile
Based on your responses
Your Values Wheel
Values arranged in a circle. Adjacent values tend to be compatible; opposite values often conflict.
The Big Picture: Four Dimensions
Your 10 values combine into four higher-order motivations that often pull in different directions.
Key Value Tensions
Values on opposite sides of the circle create tension. Where do you lean?
All 10 Values Ranked
Your complete value hierarchy from most to least emphasized.
- Relative, not absolute: There's no "good" or "bad" score. Results show which values you prioritize more relative to others.
- Cultural patterns exist: Research shows most people rank Benevolence and Universalism highest, while Power often ranks lowest. Your pattern may differ.
- Values are stable but not fixed: Your core values tend to remain consistent over time, though life experiences can shift priorities.
- Context matters: How you apply values may vary by situation, even if your underlying priorities stay the same.
The Science of Values
From the Research
"Values are desirable, trans-situational goals, varying in importance, that serve as guiding principles in people's lives."
— Schwartz, S.H. (1992). Universals in the Content and Structure of Values . Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 25, 1-65.
The 10 Basic Human Values
Shalom Schwartz, a social psychologist, developed this theory after studying values across dozens of countries. He found the same 10 value types appear everywhere:
| Value | Core Motivation |
|---|---|
| Self-Direction | Independent thought and action, creativity, freedom |
| Stimulation | Excitement, novelty, challenge in life |
| Hedonism | Pleasure and sensuous gratification |
| Achievement | Personal success through demonstrating competence |
| Power | Social status, prestige, control over resources |
| Security | Safety, harmony, stability of society and self |
| Conformity | Restraint of actions that might harm others or violate norms |
| Tradition | Respect and commitment to cultural or religious customs |
| Benevolence | Preserving and enhancing welfare of close others |
| Universalism | Understanding, tolerance, protection of all people and nature |
The Circular Structure
These values aren't random. They form a circle where adjacent values share motivations and opposite values conflict. For example:
- Benevolence and Universalism both involve concern for others (adjacent, compatible)
- Power and Universalism conflict: dominance vs. equality (opposite)
- Stimulation and Security conflict: seeking novelty vs. stability (opposite)
Cross-Cultural Validation
From the Research
"The theory has now been validated in samples from over 80 countries using different instruments."
— Sagiv, L., & Schwartz, S.H. (2022). Personal Values Across Cultures . Annual Review of Psychology, 73, 517-546.
Values Predict Behavior
Research shows values predict meaningful outcomes:
- High Universalism correlates with pro-environmental attitudes and behavior
- High Achievement relates to career ambition and work hours
- High Conformity links to following rules and avoiding risk
- High Self-Direction associates with creativity and entrepreneurship
From the Research
"Personal value hierarchies are relatively stable over time. Test-retest correlations for the higher-order dimensions are typically around .7 to .8 over a one-year period."
— Based on longitudinal studies reviewed in Sagiv & Schwartz (2022).
Typical Value Priorities
Across cultures, some patterns emerge. Most people tend to rank:
- Highest: Benevolence and Universalism (concern for others)
- Lowest: Power and Stimulation (dominance and thrill-seeking)
Your personal pattern may differ based on personality, culture, and life experiences.
How We Built This Assessment
This assessment is inspired by the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) developed by Shalom Schwartz and colleagues. We created original questions that measure the same 10 value constructs while respecting intellectual property.
Our Items
Each of our 21 questions targets one of the 10 values. We cover:
- Self-Direction: creativity, independence, freedom of choice
- Stimulation: excitement, variety, adventure
- Hedonism: pleasure, enjoying life, self-indulgence
- Achievement: success, ambition, demonstrating competence
- Power: wealth, authority, social status
- Security: personal safety, societal stability
- Conformity: following rules, proper behavior
- Tradition: humility, customs, religious practices
- Benevolence: caring for close others, loyalty
- Universalism: equality, tolerance, environmental protection
About this tool: This assessment is based on Schwartz's Theory of Basic Values. We use original question wording designed for educational self-reflection. We are not affiliated with Dr. Schwartz or the European Social Survey.
Scoring Method
- 21 items total, each rated 1-6 ("Not like me at all" to "Very much like me")
- Each value is measured by 2-3 items (Universalism has 3, others have 2)
- Value scores are the average of their items, ranging 1.0 to 6.0
- Higher-order dimensions combine related values
Interpretation Approach
Following Schwartz's guidance, we emphasize relative interpretation. We show how your values compare to each other, not whether any score is "high" or "low" in absolute terms. This accounts for individual response styles.
Sources
- Schwartz, S.H. (1992). Universals in the content and structure of values. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 25, 1-65.
- Schwartz, S.H., et al. (2001). Extending the cross-cultural validity of the basic human values. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 32, 519-542.
- Schwartz, S.H. (2012). An overview of the Schwartz theory of basic values. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1).
- Sagiv, L., & Schwartz, S.H. (2022). Personal values across cultures. Annual Review of Psychology, 73, 517-546.
Common Questions
Similar scores across values isn't unusual. It might mean you genuinely care about many different things, or that you tend to rate everything moderately. Focus on the relative differences: even small gaps can be meaningful. Your top 2-3 and bottom 2-3 values are usually the most informative.
Research shows values are relatively stable in adulthood, but not fixed. Major life events (becoming a parent, career changes, cultural exposure) can shift priorities. Most changes happen gradually. If you're curious, retake this assessment in a year to see if anything has shifted.
No, values and personality are related but distinct. Personality describes how you tend to behave (e.g., extroverted, conscientious). Values describe what you find important (e.g., achievement, benevolence). They correlate: open people often value self-direction, agreeable people value benevolence. But they're different constructs.
About This Assessment
Research Foundation
This tool adapts the conceptual framework of Schwartz's theory of basic human values. We created original question wording to measure the 10 value types identified in cross-cultural research. Our items target the same constructs as the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) but use different phrasing.
Important Limitations
- Adapted framework: The Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) and Schwartz Value Survey (SVS) are established instruments with specific item wording. Our questions are original adaptations based on the same theoretical framework. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by Dr. Schwartz, the European Social Survey, or any official research group.
- Adapted items: While our questions are based on validated theory, this specific adaptation has not undergone separate psychometric validation studies. Therefore, results should be interpreted for self-awareness rather than formal assessment.
- Educational purpose: This tool is designed for personal insight and self-reflection, not for clinical or research purposes.
How to Use Your Results
Use this as a starting point for reflection. Consider whether your top and bottom values ring true. Think about how your values might influence decisions, relationships, and goals. For formal research purposes, seek out validated instruments and qualified practitioners.