THE 15 MOST IMPORTANT CITIZEN VALUES - CULTURE VOCABULARY

The citizens values are important rules that everyone must learn to ensure harmonious coexistence in society. For example, responsibility, respect, humility, tolerance, among others.

Living in society is not easy. Each person is different, thinks differently and does not behave in the same way all the time. Education is responsible for ensuring that society can live in a climate where respect and freedom reign.

Citizens collaborating in the catastrophe produced by an earthquake in Ecuador.

Therefore, citizen values are the set of guidelines established by society to be able to live in a community in a calm and orderly way. They are in charge of directing both social relations and harmonious coexistence among citizens.

In other words, citizen values are all those behaviors that make individuals become better people. These are represented in the different ways in which someone expresses their behavior, from the cultural and moral to the emotional and social.

They must be instilled by the different institutions in which people participate in a society. The first of them is the family, then the school and finally the other institutions where there is participation.

It is important to highlight that it is not easy for citizenship education to achieve its objectives as long as there is no commitment on the part of social and political institutions to promote social inclusion, freedom, equity and individual rights of the people who make up a society.

The Most Outstanding Citizen Values

1- Responsibility

This is perhaps the most important citizen value of all. Responsibility has to do with the obligations that everyone has with respect to the decisions they make and with the consequences that these can generate.

Every action that is taken has an impact on society. And the responsibility is based on analyzing each of these acts and taking charge of them. For this reason, it is essential to educate young people about the consequences that their actions can generate and how they should take responsibility for them.

2- Respect

For the conception of responsibility to exist, there must be respect. This is the value that allows a person to recognize, accept and appreciate the qualities that other people have, as well as their rights.

Respect is understanding that beyond 'my rights' and 'my freedoms', there are also the rights and freedoms of others. This value is essential to have a good coexistence and communication with other people.

3- Honesty

People are trained to distinguish right from wrong. This ability is known as 'moral conscience'. Honesty is then a human quality that consists in living and expressing that consciousness.

It is basically expressing yourself and behaving consistently and sincerely. This means that what you say must be aligned with your actions. Being honest shows respect for yourself and others.

4- Cooperation

Since citizen values are the main component in maintaining harmonious social relationships, cooperation cannot be overlooked. Cooperation is nothing more than the assistance offered to carry out a common work.

It is done to fulfill a shared objective. As with the rest of the values, they are social facts that occur in the environment in which people operate.

5- Solidarity

To coexist harmoniously in society it is necessary that there be solidarity. This value consists of helping other people regardless of their religion, culture, gender or political position. With the practice of solidarity, social ties are created that unite the different members of a society.

This value implies having feelings such as affection, empathy, a sense of justice and selfless help. In addition, solidarity is what allows concrete actions to be carried out that respond favorably to the needs of fellow citizens.

6- Humility

Another essential value to live peacefully in society is humility. This can be defined as the absence of pride. Humble people are characterized by being modest, by expressing respect for other people and not feeling more important than others due to their achievements.

This virtue also consists of knowing one's own limitations and weaknesses and acting according to such knowledge. However, the concept of humility is often distorted.

It seems that even if ostentation is put aside, it is not possible to show one's own merits, since not everyone is prepared to face what others have achieved.

7- Loyalty

An essential value for harmonious coexistence with others is loyalty. This virtue is developed in the conscience and implies fulfilling an acquired commitment even in the face of adverse or changing circumstances.

It's also about being committed to what we believe and to the people in whom we believe. Loyalty is associated with trust. Being loyal means being trustworthy. Those who are not loyal cannot be a good citizen because their behavior is not in line with the actions that allow a good coexistence in society.

8- Tolerance

Tolerance is a value closely related to respect. It is about the ability to accept diversity of opinion, social, cultural, ethnic, political and religious. It also has to do with knowing how to listen and accept other people as they are, without judging them.

Thanks to tolerance, it is possible to live in a society where the differences of each person are respected, from their thoughts to their actions. But, despite how much the world and the societies that comprise it have evolved, tolerance is a citizen value absent in many places.

9- Justice

Justice is one of the values that is most closely related to the harmonious coexistence of citizens. It is based on the set of rules and regulations that are established so that adequate relationships can exist between people and institutions.

This is what allows authorizing, prohibiting or allowing specific actions in the interaction that occurs between individuals and institutions. In short, this value has to do with the conception of what is good for all those who make up the same society.

In practice, its purpose is to recognize what corresponds and belongs to each person. Through justice, the rights of individuals are respected, their efforts are rewarded and their safety is guaranteed.

10- Transparency

This value has to do with honesty in the actions that are carried out. It is necessary to understand that the actions of common interest, entrusted by family, friends, neighbors, teachers, etc. they must be informed to all interested parties.

This implies that you must act clearly without hiding anything. In the case of the rulers of a country, for example, public transparency means that all actions that have an implication in the lives of citizens must be public knowledge.

11- Citizen participation

Participating has to do with the action of getting involved in the activities carried out within the society to which one belongs. It is basically "taking part in" all those actions that promote collective well-being.

This value is also the duty of all citizens to contribute to the maintenance of the State and to the development of the country. This is something that is achieved not only through the fulfillment of other citizen duties, but also through the exercise of tax rights.

Citizen participation is what allows a society to improve its living conditions and guarantee the resolution of the social problems that concern it.

12- Commitment

Commitment is a value that implies compliance with both the laws and the agreements that have been reached with someone. A sense of commitment is essential to being good citizens.

To be committed is to fulfill what was promised, that is, to make the actions go in line with what has been said previously. On the other hand, commitment to society also has to do with carrying out actions that benefit the group of citizens that make up your community.

It is also important to educate young people about the commitment to study and prepare for life. But not only so that they can earn income, but also so that they provide solutions to the problems that arise in their environment.

13- Punctuality

Punctuality has to do with the fact of valuing your time and especially that of others. It is also about the ability to complete a task or an obligation before or within the period that has been established for it.

This value is seen as a sign of consideration towards the people who are waiting. So much so that in some cultures, lateness means contempt for someone else's time and can be considered an insult.

14- Self-determination

Self-determination has to do with the ability of a person to make their own decisions. It is about acting based on your interests, preferences and abilities without being influenced by other people. Every person should act for herself and express her ideas and thoughts without allowing herself to be manipulated by other people.

15- Order

This is a value that is learned at home from a very young age and it is an idea that accompanies people for the rest of their lives. In addition, it is a behavior that is extrapolated to other areas of life.

The order not only refers to the organization of the material but also to the way in which ideas are organized and the way in which life is conducted in general terms.

Themes of interest

Types of securities.

Universal values.

Sociocultural values.

Moral values.

Spiritual values.

Aesthetic values.

Material values.

Intellectual values.

Instrumental values.

Political values.

Cultural values.

Hierarchy of values.

Priority values.

Transcendental values.

Objective values.

Vital values.

Ethical values.