Dr Niki Harré, The University of Auckland
When people realise that others share their values they feel hope for the future.
A widespread ‘tale of terror’ in Western societies is that people do not care about the common good. Instead, they focus on getting ahead in a world obsessed with money, materialism, individual success and status. Research done with 1085 New Zealand adults challenges this tale. Participants were asked to name three things they consider of ‘infinite’ value. Infinite values were defined as that which is scared, precious or special and of value for its own sake. Overwhelmingly, people’s infinite values concerned connection to people and other life forms, positive emotions, self-expression and learning, the natural world, and spirituality.
In a follow-up study, the researchers showed 121 adults a word cloud that displayed the values offered in the first part of the research, and asked them to write down the thoughts and feelings they had on seeing it. The most common responses were a sense of belonging to a human community, reassurance, and feeling uplifted and hopeful. This suggests that when people realise that others care deeply about human and ecological wellbeing, they experience a ‘tale of joy’ that gives them hope for the future and makes action for the common good seem worthwhile.
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