School of Business and Economics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK.
Sci Rep. 2022 Oct 25;12(1):17844. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-22862-1.
A long-standing conundrum is whether age differences in personality are due to generation, or internal change with age. Using a representative sample from The Netherlands (N = 1599; aged 16-84 at the start), the current research focuses on human values (an important aspect of personality), following the same individuals for 12 years. We distinguish four generations, Silent-generation, Baby-boomers, Generation-X and Millennials. We found clear differences across generations in human values, with Millennials, e.g., valuing hedonism more than all other generations. Furthermore, value change over time was mainly evident in Millennials. Some values (achievement and conformity) were stable within individuals and between generations. Change over time across most values occurred mainly in Millennials, but not for all values. Some values were stable in adults (e.g., hedonism, conformity) while other values still increased (e.g., security, self-direction) or decreased (e.g., power, stimulation) in importance. In adults older than Millennials change decreased and change was absent in the oldest generation. Hence, age differences in values seem both due to generation, as well as internal change, although the latter mainly in young adults. These value changes over time may have implications for developments in societal values in the long run.
一个长期存在的难题是，人格的年龄差异是由于代际差异，还是随着年龄的增长而产生的内在变化。本研究使用来自荷兰的代表性样本（N=1599；开始时年龄在 16-84 岁之间），重点关注人类价值观（人格的一个重要方面），对同一批个体进行了 12 年的跟踪研究。我们区分了四个世代，分别是沉默世代、婴儿潮世代、X 世代和千禧世代。我们发现，不同世代之间的人类价值观存在明显差异，例如，千禧世代比其他世代更重视享乐主义。此外，随着时间的推移，价值观的变化主要在千禧一代中显现。一些价值观（成就和从众）在个体内部和世代之间保持稳定。大多数价值观在时间上的变化主要发生在千禧一代，但并非所有价值观都是如此。一些价值观在成年人中是稳定的（例如享乐主义、从众），而其他价值观的重要性仍在增加（例如安全、自我导向）或减少（例如权力、刺激）。在千禧一代之后的成年人中，变化减少，而最年长的一代则没有变化。因此，价值观的年龄差异似乎既取决于代际差异，也取决于内在变化，尽管后者主要发生在年轻成年人中。这些随着时间的推移而发生的价值观变化，从长远来看，可能会对社会价值观的发展产生影响。
