Value change across adolescent years: How do adolescents' intrinsic and extrinsic values develop?

• Value structures increased in differentiation across adolescence. • Value for community formed a distinct factor only from mid-adolescence and on. • Individual differences in value importance became more stable over time. • Mean level of intrinsic values remained stable, if not decreased slightly. • Higher family SES was associated with—albeit weakly—higher extrinsic values. According to self-determination theory, intrinsic values foster personal and societal wellness, while extrinsic values detract from them. This study examined the developmental change/stability in intrinsic and extrinsic values from early to mid- and late adolescence and how these values relate to family SES. Three aspects of change/stability were examined: structures, rank-order stability, and mean level. An existing dataset from a multi-wave multi-cohort panel study was used involving 2,378 (Cohort 1) and 2,351 (Cohort 2) Korean adolescents. Across adolescence, value structure became more differentiated; rank-order stability increased; mean levels of intrinsic values remained stable, if not decreased; family SES was associated with higher levels of extrinsic values. These findings contribute to the cultural diversity of the existing knowledge on personality development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]