World Value Survey
Summary
From the WVS website (https://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/WVSContents.jsp):
"The WVS consists of nationally representative surveys conducted in almost 100 countries which contain almost 90 percent of the world’s population, using a common questionnaire. The WVS is the largest non-commercial, cross-national, time series investigation of human beliefs and values ever executed, currently including interviews with almost 400,000 respondents. Moreover the WVS is the only academic study covering the full range of global variations, from very poor to very rich countries, in all of the world’s major cultural zones."
The WVS has collected data in a series of waves that are now scheduled to occur every 5 years, and each survey has been conducted in more countries than the previous survey. Each survey ranges across multiple years because that is how long that takes to collect survey data in so many countries.
Wave 1 collected data on 11 countries from 1981-1984.
Wave 2 is from 1990-1994.
Wave 3 is from 1995-1998.
Wave 4 is from 1999-2004.
Wave 5 is from 2005-2009.
Wave 6 is from 2010-2014.
Wave 7 collected data on 80 countries from 2017-2022.
Wave 8 is planned for 2024-2026.
The IFs model currently has 113 series which use WVS data. Not all of the series use data that is included in the latest wave(s).
IFs Series Included in Wave 7
MatPMTop
- Percent high on Materialist/Postmaterialist scale (4 or 5)
- WVS Code Y002
UnitedNations
- Confidence in United Nations (1=great deal; 4=none at all)
- WVS Code E069_20
RespectAuthPercent
- Percent saying more respect for authority would be good
- WVS Code E018
GodImprtPercent
- Percent saying God is very important
- WVS Code F063
HomoJustifPercent
- Percent saying that homosexuality is never justified
- WVS Code F118
AbortJustifPercent
- Percent saying that abortion is never justified
- WVS Code F118
PMMinMatPercent
- Percent postmaterialist minus percent materialist
- WVS Code Y002
TradSRTop
- Percent in top quartile on Traditiona/SecularRational Values
- WVS Code Y010
DemocBest
- 1=Strongly agree democracy best, 4=Strongly disagree
- WVS Code E214
WVSIncomeEqual
- 10 point index of Income inequality: 1=Incomes should be made more equal , 10= We need larger income differences as incentives for individual effort
- WVS Code E035
WVSHomoJustif
- a 10 point scale index asking whether homosexuality is justifiable. 1 being never justifiable, 10 being always justifiable.
- WVS Code: F118
WVSGodImprt
- Index from 1 to 10 of how Important is God in the respondents life. 1= Not at all, 10= Very
- WVS Code: F063
WVSGodBelief
- Belief in: God? 1= Yes 2=No
- WVS Code: F050
WVSFreeChoice&Control
- 10 point index of how much freedom of choice do one has about their life. 1= none at all, 10=a great deal
- WVS Code: A173
WVSEmployment
- Are you employed now or not? If yes, about how many hours a week? If more than one job: only for the main job. 1=full time (>30 hours/week), 2= Part time employee (<30), 3= self employed, 4= Retired/pensioned, 5= Housewife not otherwise employed, 6=student
- WVS Code: X028
WVSEducLevel
- Highest education level attained? 1= no formal education, 2=less than primary, 3= primary… 9= University degree
- WVS Code: X025A_01
WVSDivorJustif
- a 10 point scale index asking whether divorce is justifiable. 1 being never justifiable, 10 being always justifiable.
- F121
Series not included in Wave 7
SurvSETop
- Percent in top quartile on Survival/Self-expression Values
- A043B
WVSIdealFamSize
- 10 point index asking: what do you think is the ideal size of the family - how many children, if any? 1= none , 10=10+ children
- WVS Code D017
WVSForeignAid
- How much more foreign aid do you think this country should contribute? 1= about 1.5x as much, 2= about 2x, 3= about 3x, 4= about 4x, 5=more than 4x as much, -3=not applicable
- WVS Code: E129B
WVSEnvironRecycle
- In the last 12 months Have you chosen household products that you think are better for the environment? 1= have, 2=have not
- WVS Code: B002
WVSEnvironProduct
- In the last 12 months Have you chosen household products that you think are better for the environment? 1= have, 2=have not
- B011
WVSWomenWork
- Husband and wife should both contribute to income? 1=Strongly agree, 2= Agree, 3=Disagree, 4= Strongly Disagree
- WVS Code: D058
WVSEnvironPayMore
- I would buy things as 20% higher prices if it helped protect the environment. 1=strongly agree, 2=agree, 3=disagree, 4=strongly disagree
- WVS Code: B004
WVSEnvironMastery
- Whic
h statement do you agree with. 1=Human Beings should master Nature, 2= Human Beings should coexist with Nature
- WVS Code: B009
WVSEnvironContrib
- In the last 12 months, have you contributed to an environmental organization? 1= have done, 2= have not
- WVS Code: B015
WVSEnvironAgree
- How strongly agree with: environmental problems can be solved without any int'l agreements, 1=Strongly agree, 2= agree, 3= disagree, 4=Strongly disagree
- WVS Code: B010
WVSEnvironAction
- In the last 12 months, have you attended a meeting or signed a letter or petition aimed at protecting the environment? 1=have done, 2= have not
- B014
WVSDiscussPol
- When with friends how often do you discuss politics? 1=Frequently, 2= Occasionally, 3=Never
- WVS Code: E111
WVSDemocGood
- Democracy as a political system for governing a country. 1= Very good, 2=fairly good, 3=fairly bad, 4=Very bad
- WVS Code: E214
WVSCorruptOffs
- What is the extent of political corruption? Almost no public officials engage in it=1, a few are=2, most are=3, Almost all public officials engage in it = 4
- WVS Code: E196
WVSConfTV
- How much confidence do you have in TV? 1= A great deal, 2=Quite a lot , 3= not very much , 4= none at all
- WVS Code: E069_49
WVSSatisOfficHol
- Satisfaction with people in national office: 1= Very Satisfied, 2=Fairly satisfied, 3=Fairly dissatisfied 4=Very dissatisfied
- WVS Code: E125