Changing Values in Europe: Has Postmaterialism eclipsed Materiaism?

Changing Values in Europre: Has Postmaterialism eclipsed Materiaism?

As a postindustrial society, Europe, according to Inglehart’s thesis, has now moved from materialist to postmaterialist. While some political trends and ideas do show this shift, other social movements and voting patterns blur and disturb existing theories. From the legalization of gay marriage, anti-discrimination movements and green politics to the rise of nationalism and decline in voter turnout; it seems that the current political climate struggles to fit into any clear paradigm. One of the most discussed set of studies on political behaviours is Inglehart’s theory on Postmaterialism (1970-2006 and 2017). For the past few decades, his work has remained topical and influential. Populations’ values are constantly changing. Even though his analyses and predictions explain this evolution for the most part, Europeans’ attitudes and mentalities continue to raise questions and feed debates. This essay will look at Inglehart’s predicted shift from materialism to postmaterialism, and assess its relevance to the current political culture in Western Europe. It will argue that perhaps a more nuanced and alternative model works better to understand today’s value priorities. A multidimensional flexibility could explain the more complex reality of one society’s ideology. First, it will summarize Inglehart’s thesis, secondly expose its flaws and finally it will propose a variant based on theories by Bean and Papadakis (1994) and Dalton (2000).

After more than 35 years of research (1970 to 2006), Inglehart confirms that values have indeed moved from materialism to postmaterialism. After World War II, Europe has thrived economically and culturally, and therefore has been able to provide a safer place for its citizens. Industrialization, welfare state and education constitute the ground basis for a change in mentalities. Two theories work conjointly in demonstrating this phenomenon: the theory of scarcity and the theory of socialization (2008: 131). The first one bases itself on socio-economic development which provides greater security, or more precisely a sense of existential security. With physical safety taken for granted, individuals tend to drop materialist concerns and focus on self-expression rather than survival. According to Inglehart, this only works in synergy with socialization and the process of intergenerational replacement. This mechanism explains how a population is gradually changing in its components and therefore its mentalities. When each generation is brought up in a more secure environment, each younger cohort becomes more postmaterialist. These early formative years during childhood are the ones that matter when building an individual’s set of values. According to Inglehart, this evolution can be transposed on two different axes: (1) the traditional and secular-rational dimension and (2) the survival and self-expression dimension (2008: 139). While the first one links to the decline of the importance of religion, the second refers to the shift from industrial to postindustrial society. Both show that Western countries are becoming more postmaterialist. Self-expression values put environment tolerance and diversity as priorities and tend to reject submission to authority as well as traditional hierarchical institutions (2008: 140). These economic and religion dimensions, alongside technology and science, all led to a transition from ‘pro-fertility norms’ to ‘individual-choice norms’ in high-income societies (2017: 1-2). Populations move away from conventional norms and traditions and evolve towards diversity, tolerance and equality.

Figure 1: Cohort Analysis: Postmaterialists minus materialists in six West European countries

(Source: Eurobarometer and World Values Survey in West Germany, France, Britain, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium 1970-2006, in Inglehart 2008)

Berry supports that idea and adds that political participation is key in demonstrating postmodernity (1999). Interest groups, especially citizens groups, draw on from postmaterialism and have an impact on politics (idea also defended by Dalton 2000). The “New Liberalism”, described here in the US, can also be seen in Europe through the emergence new political behaviours and organizations. For instance, environmentalism is a relatively recent concern which originates from the mobilization of citizens against established capitalist institutions. The creation of green parties happened in the early seventies (with PEOPLE in the UK being the first national Green party in Europe), and later other organizations and charities emerged in the late 20th century. In the same way, non-traditional sexualities and identities, as well as changes in gender norms have grown. Same-sex unions in the 1990’s and marriages in the early 2000’s became legal in Western Europe. Regarding gender equality, new laws and quotas aim to guarantee even proportions of men and women in the workplace and politics (for example, Norway passing a minimum quota legislation in 2006). LGBTQ activism is another example of new popular social concerns that have spread in western countries in the second half of the 20th century. Policies and regulations regarding racism and discrimination whether towards age, sexuality or religion have flourished around Europe. Inglehart and Berry argue that these advances can only be born in a postindustrialized society where common good and equality have replaced concerns about physical safety and survival. As shown on The World Values Survey, high-income societies tend to value concepts such as giving people more say in governement decisions or moving towards a friendlier, less impersonal society.

On the other hand, one could wonder how can the persistence of traditional

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