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Values are often used to examine cultural variability. Yet, little research has focused on the functions that values fulfill and the implications of these functions for understanding cultural variability. This paper describes a theoretical analysis of the functions of values based on 2 widely accepted pan-cultural functions: values guide actions and express needs. The theoretical model proposes that the first function differentiates values according to the goals pursued (personal, central, or social goals), whereas the second function differentiates values according to the needs expressed (survival or thriving needs). A combination of these 2 functions yields 6 basic values (structural hypothesis) with specific marker values (content hypothesis). Support for the hypotheses was obtained in a large convenience national sample (N = 5,176) of Brazilian university students with confirmatory factor analysis and multidimensional scaling. Central values were located between personal and social values, and survival and thriving values separated into 2 regions. Theoretical and cross-cultural implications of the findings, especially the universality of the general structure of motivational aims, are discussed, along with interpretations of existing value scales from a functional perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Honor is an important construct, mainly emphasized in collectivist cultures, such as Brazil. However, there is a lack of studies regarding honor in this cultural context. Therefore, the current research aims at proposing a short version of the Honor Scale ( HS-16) to the Brazilian context. Construct validity (i.e., factorial, convergent, and discriminant validity, as well as internal consistency and composite reliability) is reported in Studies 1 ( n = 220) and 2 ( n = 222), with participants from general population. In both studies, participants answered the Honor Scale and demographic questions. The authors find the HS-16 to be a reliable and valid scale, thereby enabling its use in quantitative studies regarding the correlates of honor concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed at knowing the psychometric parameters of the Antisocial and Delictive Behaviors Questionnaire (ADQ). Specifically, it tried to join evidences of its factor validity and reliability in the milieu of Paraíba- Brazil, as well as to know the adequacy of a briefed version of this measure. Two studies were accomplished. In Study 1, the participants were 480 students from high school, with a mean age of 16.2 years old (SD = 1.60), most of them were women (55.1%). In Study 2, 1,463 students of elementary school, high school, and university; with ages ranging from 10 to 36 years old (m = 16; SD = 4.41) participated in research, 59.9% were female. They answered the Antisocial and Delictive Behaviors Questionnaire and to demographic questions. Results supported the psychometric adequacy of this measure, which showed the theorized bi-factor structure. Moreover, the purpose of the ADQ briefed version revealed itself adequate, jointing evidences of factor validity and reliability similar to those of the original version. These findings were discussed based on literature and future researches are suggested as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper was to validate the Brazilian-Portuguese version of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), presenting evidence of its reliability and construct and criterion-related validity. A large Brazilian sample (2,180 participants), from five different populations (undergraduate and high school students, general population, elementary school teachers, and physicians), was considered. The results confirmed the single factorial structure and reliability (0.77 < Cronbach’s α < 0.88, mean α = 0.81) of the SWLS. Supporting its criterion-related validity, the SWLS correlated positively with positive affect and negatively with both negative affect and psychological distress across all five samples. The findings indicate that the Brazilian-Portuguese version of the SWLS is a valid instrument to use with diverse Brazilian samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexist attitudes are an important construct to understand the interpersonal relation established on a daily basis. The lack of information regarding this subject has motivated the current research, which aimed to adapt the Ambivalence Inventory towards Men to the Brazilian context and, also, to verify gender differences in sexist attitudes towards men. The sample was formed by 205 university students, mostly females (51%), with a mean age of 20.8 years old (DP = 3.62). They answered the Ambivalence Inventory towards Men (AIM) and socio-demographic questions. The results confirmed the measure as being of a bi-factorial nature, represented by the hostile (Alpha = .80) and benevolent (Alpha = .69) factors. As was theoretically expected, there were significant differences found in the hostile and benevolent sexism depending on the participant's gender, a variable that proved important in the analysis of the results of both factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examines the value correlates of social identities (identification with in-groups and geospatial units) in two collectivist cultures (Brazil, n = 471; Spain, n = 476). According to previous research, it was expected that subjects who score higher on social values would be more identified with the various traditional in-groups and with the local geospatial units and that social identities would be predicted by different values among Brazilians and Spaniards. Subjects were undergraduate students (228 males; 719 females), with age ranging from 16 to 55 years (M = 21.9; SD = 4.57), from three states in Brazil (Paraíba, Distrito Federal, and São Paulo) and Spain (Pontevedra, Madrid, and Barcelona). They were administered the Individualism-Collectivism Questionnaire, the Basic Value Survey,the In-group Identification Scale, the Geospatial Identification Scale, and a questionnaire with demographic questions (e.g., gender, age, religious affiliation). Results confirm that importance attributed to social values is correlated with traditional in-group and local geospatial identification, and that values predicting social identities are different across cultures, especially in the case of values related to geospatial identification. Specifically, among the set of social human values, belonging and tradition were most important to explain social identities. Subjects that assigned more importance to privacy were less identified with traditional ingroups, independently of their national culture. Geospatial identification was based on the values religiosity and belonging for Brazilians, and tradition, social order, honesty, and power for Spaniards. In general, these findings corroborate previous ones, suggesting the existence of a common set of values to explain social identity, based on principally normative values (social order and tradition). Moreover, they indicate the specificity and complexity of the geospatial identification in Spain, where the values of honesty and power contribute to explaining it. In this country, it is possible that the determinants of geospatial identification surpass the social orientation endorsed by people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The study of work engagement is key for better understanding the underlying mechanisms that lead people to feel more motivated at work. The construct has gained prominence over recent decades, and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) has emerged as the most popular tool to assess the construct. Though widely known and used, more psychometric evidence is needed for the UWES, especially its item parameters. Method: This study (N = 525) aimed to provide psychometric evidence for the UWES and its shortened versions in Brazil, using a range of robust statistical analyses (e.g., Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Item Response Theory). Results: Results reveal good model fit and high internal consistency for both unidimensional and three-dimensional UWES structures. UWES items also showed high discrimination, difficulty, and information levels. Finally, significant correlations between UWES and workaholism and job satisfaction provided evidence of the convergent validity of the UWES in Brazil. Conclusion: This study's findings broaden the understanding of work engagement and underscore the utility of the UWES as an efficacious tool for measuring work engagement in Brazil, paving the way for effective interventions and policies in diverse workplace environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Brazil, there are no investigations into the psychological and sociodemographic correlates of greed. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between greed and human values. In addition, we tested the mediating effect of greed on gender differences in the endorsement of values. Participants answered the Dispositional Greed Scale, Basic Values Survey and demographic questions. The value correlates indicated that greed people, although materially motivated (existence values), express higher-order needs of aesthetics (suprapersonal values). However, greed personality was a more important predictor of the personal values. There were differences between the sexes only regarding greed and personal values, in which men had higher scores. Finally, the greed partially mediated the gender difference in the endorsement of personal values which suggests that men have an egocentric orientation because are greedier. The results are discussed taking into account the Functional Theory of Human Values, personality of individual differences and evolutionary psychology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, greater acknowledgement has been given to climate change as a cultural phenomenon. This paper takes a cultural lens to the topic of climate change, in which climate-relevant understandings are grounded in wider cultural, political and material contexts. We approach climate-relevant accounts at the level of the everyday, understood as a theoretically problematic and politically contested space This is in contrast to simply being the backdrop to mundane, repetitive actions contributing to environmental degradation and the site of mitigative actions. Taking discourse as a form of practice in which fragments of cultural knowledge are drawn on to construct our environmental problems, we investigate citizens' accounts of climate-relevant issues in three culturally diverse emerging economies: Brazil, South Africa and China. These settings are important because greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are predicted to significantly increase in these countries in the future. We conducted semi-structured interviews with a range of citizens in each country using a narrative approach to contextualise climate-relevant issues as part of people's lifestyle narratives. Participants overwhelmingly framed their accounts in the context of locally-salient issues, and few accounts explicitly referred to the phenomenon of climate change. Instead, elements of climate changes were conflated with other environmental issues and related to a wide range of cultural assumptions that influenced understandings and implied particular ways of responding to environmental problems. We conclude that climate change scholars should address locally relevant understandings and develop dialogues that can wider meanings that construct climate-relevant issues in vernacular ways at the local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research within a dual-process cognitive-motivational theory of ideology and prejudice has indicated that dimensions of generalized prejudice are structured around attitudes towards dangerous, derogated and dissident groups, and that these prejudice dimensions are differentially predicted by the ideological attitudes of Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO). However, to date, these findings have been restricted to New Zealand samples. We describe two studies examining whether the structure of prejudiced attitudes and the differential prediction by RWA and SDO replicate in the Brazilian context, incorporating context-relevant examples of each group-politicians, those from the northeast region of Brazil, and environmentalists. Results broadly supported the three-factor structure of dangerous, derogated, and dissident groups. Consistent with previous research, regression and structural equation analyses showed that RWA explained prejudice against dangerous groups, SDO explained prejudice against derogated groups, and both RWA and SDO explained prejudice against dissident groups. This research provides some evidence for the generalizability of the three-dimensional structure of generalized prejudice and differential prediction by RWA and SDO. Copyright © 2014 European Association of Personality Psychology [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazil is one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., 563,470 deaths until August 9th, 2021). Since the Brazilian government is partly struggling and partly unwilling to control the pandemic, staying healthy falls almost exclusively to the population. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the predictive role of personality traits to explain the willingness to combat the COVID-19 virus. In the present study (N = 496), we investigated the Dark Pentad traits: Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychopathy, sadism, and spitefulness. Our findings revealed that the first four traits were consistently negatively associated with various measures that indicate whether the pandemic is taken seriously, such as the perceived severity of COVID-19 and intentions to act against COVID-19. Structural equation modeling further showed that general COVID-19 worry mediated the link between the Dark Pentad and adaptive and maladaptive responses. Our results indicate that all dark traits are associated with unsocial behaviors, but their relative importance varies depending on the outcome variable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]