Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

VALUES

1. What are values?

Values are defined in Organizational Behavior as the collective conceptions of what is considered

good, desirable, and proper or bad, undesirable, and improper in a culture. Goodley defines the

term value as “any characteristic deemed important because of psychological, social, moral, or

aesthetic considerations.” Values are the principles or standards of behavior. It is the core beliefs

that guide and motivate attitudes and actions. Values help us to decide whether something is good

or bad, right or wrong.

2. What are the characteristics of values?

The characteristics of values are:

• These are extremely practical, and valuation requires techniques and an understanding of
the strategic context.
• These can provide standards of competence and morality.
• These can go beyond specific situations or persons.
• Personal values can be influenced by culture, tradition, and a combination of internal and
external factors.
• These are relatively permanent.
• These are more central to the core of a person.
• Most of our core values are learned early in life from family, friends, neighborhood schools,
the mass print, visual media, and other sources within society.
• Values are loaded with effective thoughts about ideas, objects, behavior, etc.
• They contain a judgmental element in that they carry an individual’s ideas as to what is
right, good, or desirable.
• Values can differ from culture to culture and even from person to person.
• Values play a significant role in the integration and fulfillment of man’s basic impulses and
desires stably and consistently appropriate for his living.
• They are generic experiences in social action made up of both individual and social
responses and attitudes.
• They build up societies and integrate social relations.
• They mold the ideal dimensions of personality and depth of culture.
• They influence people’s behavior and serve as criteria for evaluating the actions of others.
• They have a great role to play in the conduct of social life. They help in creating norms to
guide day-to-day behavior.
The values of a culture may change, but most remain stable during one person’s lifetime.
Socially shared, intensely felt values are a fundamental part of our lives. These values become part
of our personalities. They are shared and reinforced by those with whom we interact.
Since values often strongly influence attitude and behavior, they serve as a personal compass for
employee conduct in the workplace.

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

This helps determine whether an employee is passionate about work and the workplace, which can
lead to above-average returns, high employee satisfaction, strong team dynamics, and synergy.

3. Types of values and their differences.

Rokeach divided values into two types.

There are two types of values are

1. Terminal Values.

2. Instrumental Values.

Terminal Values
Terminal Values are most desirable to humans, and Instrumental values are views of how
human desires should be achieved. These are values that we think are most important or
desirable. Terminal Values refer to desirable end-states of existence, the goals a person
would like to achieve during his or her lifetime. They include happiness, self-respect,
recognition, inner harmony, leading a prosperous life, and professional excellence.
Instrumental Values
Instrumental values deal with views on acceptable modes of conductor means of achieving
the terminal values. These include being honest, sincere, ethical, and ambitious. These
values are more focused on personality traits and character.

There are many typologies of values. One of the most established surveys to assess
individual values is the Rokeach Value Survey.
This survey lists 18 terminal and 18 instrumental values in alphabetical order. They
are given below:

Terminal Values Instrumental Values

A comfortable life (a prosperous life) Ambitious (hardworking)

An exciting life (a stimulating, active life) Broadminded (open-minded)

A sense of accomplishment (lasting

Capable (competent, efficient)
contribution)

A world of peace (free of war and

Cheerful ( lighthearted, joyful)
conflict)

A world of beauty (the beauty of nature Clean (neat, tidy)

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

Terminal Values Instrumental Values

and the arts)

Equality (brotherhood, equal opportunity Courageous (standing up for your

for all) beliefs)

Family security (taking care of loved

Forgiving (willing to pardon)
ones)

Helpful (working for the welfare

Freedom (independence, free choice)
of others)

Happiness ( contentedness) Honest (sincere, truthful)

Inner harmony (freedom from inner

Imaginative (daring, creative)
conflict)

Mature love (sexual and spiritual Independent (self-reliant, self-

intimacy) sufficient)

National security (protection from

Intellectual (intelligent, reflective)
attack)

Pleasure (an enjoyable, leisurely life) Logical (consistent, rational)

Salvation (saved, eternal) Loving (affectionate, tender)

Self-respect(self-esteem) Obedient (dutiful, respectful)

Social recognition (respect, admiration) Polite (courteous, well-mannered)

Responsible (dependable,
A true friend (close companionship)
reliable)

Self-controlled (restrained, self-

Wisdom ( a mature understanding of life)
disciplined)

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

Differences between terminal and instrumental values.

The key difference between terminal and instrumental values is that terminal values are the
highest values in a person’s value system, whereas instrumental values are the ones that are often
used.

Both terminal and instrumental values affect people’s personal as well as professional lives alike –
for example, a person with a strong stimulation selecting risky occupations (police officer,
firefighter) and a person who prefers achievement becoming an entrepreneur. The priorities of
values differ among these groups of people in society.

Terminal values are the goals that a person would like to achieve during his or her lifetime. They
signify the final goals and objectives of a life of a person, and they are his/her destination.
Therefore, they are also referred to as the end-state of existence. Terminal values are the highest
values in a person’s value system. Therefore, they are very important. These values are shared by a
group as a whole.

Examples of Terminal Values

• A world at peace (free of war and conflict)

• Family security (taking care of loved ones)
• Freedom (independence, free choice)
• Equality (brotherhood, equal opportunity for all)
• Self-respect (self-esteem)
• Happiness (contentedness)
• Wisdom (a mature understanding of life)
• National security (protection from attack)
• True friendship (close companionship)
• Salvation (saved eternal life)

Instrumental values are modes of behaviour in achieving the terminal values. These values are used
often in the day to day lives. These values lead to conflicts since they differ within a group.
Generally, these values show ways an individual would follow to achieve the aims in his life.

Examples of Instrumental Values

• Cheerful (light-hearted, joyful)

• Love (affectionate, tender)
• Honest (sincere, truthful)
• Self-Control (restrained, self-discipline)
• Capable (competent, effective)
• Ambitious (hard-working, aspiring)
• Polite (courteous, well mannered)
• Imaginative (daring, creative)
• Independent (self-reliant, self-sufficient)
• Intellectual (intelligent, reflective)
• Broad-Minded (open-minded)

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

• Logical (consistent, rational)

4. Importance of values.

Indian sociologist R.K. Mukherjee writes: “By their nature, all human relations and behavior are
embedded in values.

•Value is the foundation for understanding the level of motivation.

•It influences our perception.
•Value helps to understand what ought to be or what ought not to be.
•It contains interpretations of right or wrong.
•These influence attitudes and behavior.
•It implies that certain behaviors and outcomes are preferred over others.
•These allow the members of an organization to interact harmoniously. These make it easier
to reach goals that would be impossible to achieve individually.
• These goals are set for achievements, and they motivate, define, and color all our cognitive,
affective, and connective activities.
• They are the guideposts of our lives and direct us to who we want to be.
• Values and morals can guide, inspire, and motivate a person, giving energy and a zest for
living and doing something meaningful.
Values are important to the study of organizational behavior because they lay the foundation for
the understanding of attitudes and motivation.

5. What are the sources of values?

Sources of values are

• Family: Family is a great source of values. A child leams his first value from his family.
• Friends & peers: Friends and peers play a vital role in achieving values.
• Community or society: As a part of society, a person leams values from society or different
groups of society.
• School: As a learner, schools and teachers also play a very important role in introducing
values.
• Media: Media such as – Print media and electronic media also play the role of increasing
values in the minds of people.
• Relatives: Relative also helps to create values in the minds of people.
• Organization: Different organizations and institutions also play a vital role in creating value.
• Religion.
• History.
• Books.
• Others.

6.

SELF-EXPLORATION

1. What do you mean by self-exploration? What is the need for self-exploration? What do you
understand by self-exploration? Where does it take place – self or body? Explain the
concepts of natural acceptance and experiential validation as the mechanisms of self-

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

exploration. What is the mechanism of self-exploration? And as a result what do we get in

the end and how?

ANS. Self-exploration is the process to find out what is valuable to me by investigating within
myself, what is right for me, true for me, has to be judged within myself. Through self-exploration
we get the value of our self. For self-exploration we need two expects:

a. Natural acceptance: Natural acceptance implies unconditional and total acceptance of

the self, people and environment. It also refers to the absence of any exception from
others. Once we fully and truly commit our self on the basis of natural acceptance, we
feel a holistic sense of inner harmony, tranquility and fulfillment.
b. Experiential validation: Experiential validation is a process that infuses direct
experience with the learning environment and content. It may be regarded as a
philosophy and methodology in which the direct experience and focused reflection of
the individual helps to increase knowledge, develop skill and clarify values. Self-
exploration takes place in the self and not the body.

2. Illustrate the purpose of self-exploration.

ANS. Self-exploration is the process to find out what is valuable to me by investigating
within myself, what is right for me, true for me, has to be judged within myself. Through
self-exploration we get the value of our self. The purpose of self-exploration is: It is a
process of dialogue between “what you are” and “what you really want to be”: It is a process
of focusing attention on our self, our present beliefs and aspirations vis-à-vis what we really
want to be (that is to say, what is naturally acceptable to us). If these two are the same, then
there is no problem. If on investigation we find that these two are not the same, then it
means we are living with this contradiction (of not being what we really want to be) and
hence, we need to resolve this contradiction this conflict within us. It is a process of
discovering that there is something innate, invariant and universal in all human beings.

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

This enables us to look at our confusions and contradictions within and resolve them by
becoming aware of our natural acceptance. It is a process of self-evolution through self-
investigation: It successively enables us to evolve by bridging the gap between ‘what we are’
and ‘what to be’. Hence, the self-exploration leads to our own improvement, our self-
evolution – we will become qualitatively better.
It is a process of knowing oneself and through that, knowing the entire existence: The
exploration starts by asking simple questions about our self, which gives our clarity about
our being, and then clarity about everything around us. It is a process of recognizing one’s
relationship with every unit in existence and fulfilling it:
It is a process of becoming aware about our right relationship with other entities in
existence and through that discovering the interconnectedness, co-existence and other in
the entire existence, and living accordingly.
It is a process of knowing human conduct, human character and living accordingly: It is a
process of discovering the definitiveness of human conduct and human character and
enabling one to be definite in thought, behaviour and work.
It is a process of being in harmony in oneself and in harmony with entire existence: This
process of self-exploration helps us to be in harmony with our self and with everything
around.
It is a process of identifying our innateness and moving towards self-organization and self-
expression: This process of self-exploration helps us to identify our swatva and through that
acquiring swantantrata and swarajya.
Swatva: Innateness of self – the natural acceptance of harmony
Swatantrata: Being self- organized – being in harmony with oneself
Swarajya: Self-expression, self- extension – living in harmony with others
Swatva Swatantrata Swarajya. The swatva is already there, intact in each one of us. By being
in dialogue with it, we attain swantantrata enabling us to work for swarajya. What do you
understand by the terms svatva, swatantrata and swarajya?

3. What is innateness (svatva), self-organization (swatantrata) and self-expression

(swarajya)? How are they related to each other?

ANS. This process of self-exploration helps us to identify our swatva and through that
acquiring swantantrata and swarajya. Swatva means innateness of self – the natural
acceptance of harmony. Swatantrata means being self- organized – being in harmony with
oneself Swarajya means self-expression, self- extension – living in harmony with others The
swatva is already there, intact in each one of us. By being in dialogue with it, we attain
swantantrata enabling us to work for swarajya. Living in contradiction, means we are not
self-organized and living with pre-conditionings where we have assumed certain things,
have accumulated desires without having first evaluated them, then it means we are
partantra. On the other hand, when we identify our innateness, what we really want to be
and establish a dialogue with it, it enables us to start living with this harmony, it starts

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 Notes for Business Communication and Value Science-I (CSBS)

expressing itself through our harmonious behaviour and work, and it naturally extends to
our participation with the surroundings. This is working towards swarajya.

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