Schwartz Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ-21)
Psychology: Values & BeliefsReliability: alphas 0.55–0.78 across 10 values3 sample items
About this scale
A 21-item measure of Schwartz's 10 basic human values: power, achievement, hedonism, stimulation, self-direction, universalism, benevolence, tradition, conformity, security. Used in 200+ countries (European Social Survey).
Sample item(s)
“It is important to him to be rich. He wants to have a lot of money and expensive things (power)”
“He thinks it is important that every person in the world be treated equally (universalism)”
“Tradition is important to him (tradition)”
Reliability
Reported internal consistency: alphas 0.55–0.78 across 10 values. As a rule of thumb, Cronbach’s α ≥ .70 is considered acceptable, ≥ .80 good, and ≥ .90 excellent for established measures.
Notes
Free for academic use; PVQ-40 is the longer version with higher reliability.
Source & citation
Schwartz, S. H. (2003): A proposal for measuring value orientations across nations. Questionnaire Package of the European Social Survey, pp. 259–290.
Source. Scale details are summarised from the publication cited above. Always consult the original source for the full item set, scoring, and permission to use.
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