- Types
- Freedom
- Sovereignty
- Security
- Equality
- Wealth
- Examples
- Left and right
- Liberalism and authoritarianism
- Themes of interest
- References
The political values are the values of each person, which help to understand politics in one way or another. According to this concept, a political value is what makes a particular person support a specific ideology. This concept has been modified throughout recent history by the emergence of new ideas.
Harold Lasswell's approaches and Marx's Communist Manifesto are two factors closely related to what politics is and how it is perceived. The way in which a citizen perceives politics is closely linked to the way in which he values it.
Types
Freedom
Freedom is an inherent value in most democratic societies worldwide. Its political origin comes from ancient times, when slavery was common in the world. In societies like the Greek, freedom consisted in "not having a master."
In modernity, freedom is related to the values of tolerance and equality. The political perception of a human being is linked to the ability to be free, to be able to make their own decisions and to be able to develop their daily life without the intervention of third parties.
From this value other concepts have been developed such as the theory of the social contract, proposed by Rousseau, Locke and Hobbes. This theory drew a clear line between what a person is free to do by right and what he is not free to do for social reasons.
Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the ability of a nation to act independently. In turn, there are several types of sovereignty. The way in which a citizen perceives the sovereignty of his country generates a value that represents the mode of government.
Countries where sovereignty rests with the people are usually considered democratic and the perception of this value tends to be positive.
In contrast, in nations where the government exercises control and ignores popular opinion, people generate negative value and their political vision is affected based on this.
Security
There are several ways to appreciate the value of security, but in terms of political value it usually encompasses all the aspects that make a person feel safe where they live.
This includes the perception of being protected from all dangers or causes that may be harmful to an individual.
This value primarily refers to external forces that may interfere with a person's safety.
Generally, in insecure societies, people tend to favor political conditions that exert controls. These can be economic or civil, depending on the type of insecurity that exists in the country.
Equality
In political terms, the value of equality is perceived as a condition in which all people have the same access and the same possibilities to the most important areas of a society. This encompasses freedom of expression, civil rights, and the right to property.
This concept also includes economic equality and equal access to health. How individuals perceive this value depends on the number of limitations that exist in the country, as well as on how pronounced the difference in benefits between social classes is.
This concept can generate a political opinion favorable to leftist ideas such as socialism or communism, depending on how it is devised.
Wealth
Although the concept of wealth is closely linked to economics, it can serve to give a political idea to an individual, depending on the amount of wealth that he possesses.
If money is difficult for an individual to access, they may begin to formulate more egalitarian ideas in political terms.
The wealth capacity of a nation can also influence how its citizens perceive the value of wealth.
In a broader scope, wealth includes general possessions such as land, forests, territorial extension, access to natural resources, and so on.
Examples
The political values of each individual give rise to their particular political beliefs. Based on these, individuals tend to support a political party that is most closely related to their own values and that has ideas that advocate for its benefits.
Left and right
The political ideas of each person can be divided into two styles of beliefs: the left and the right. The term "central" has also been coined to refer to those political ideas that militate between both beliefs.
The left encompasses all beliefs that seek to eliminate hierarchy in societies. Usually the left is associated with ideas that seek to reform the democratic system and tend more towards socialism and communism.
The left is also associated with anti-war values and with the civil rights and social freedom movements that are emerging in the world.
On the other hand, the right seeks to maintain order in society, supporting the hierarchy of its members by claiming that this order is inevitable for the proper functioning of a country.
Many less favored people on the social spectrum tend to support left-wing movements, as right-wing politics often generate social gaps and lack of equality among its members. This occurs as an inevitable consequence of the creation of a social hierarchy.
Liberalism and authoritarianism
These two political views are closely related to how the value of freedom is perceived in a society.
In societies in which the individual rights of each person seek to support a collective goal rather than the benefits of each civilian, they are often seen as authoritarian.
On the other hand, liberalism opposes the dominance of the State in the political sphere and supports the value of the sovereignty of the people. In liberal beliefs, the power of a political system rests primarily with the decisions of the people.
Themes of interest
Types of securities.
Human values.
Antivalues.
Universal values.
Sociocultural values.
Moral values.
Spiritual values.
Aesthetic values.
Material values.
Intellectual values.
Instrumental values.
Cultural values.
Hierarchy of values.
Priority values.
Personal values.
Transcendental values.
Objective values.
Vital values.
Ethical values.
Priority values.
Religious values.
Civic values.
Social values.
References
- Facts and Values in Politics, Felix Oppenheim, February 1, 1973. Taken from sagepub.com
- Role of Values in Political Science: Study of Values, Political Science Website, (nd). Taken from politicalsciencenotes.com
- Left Wing vs. Right Wing, Diffen, (nd). Taken from diffen.com
- Public Opinion, Lumen Learning Website, (nd). Taken from lumenlearning.com
- Political Values, Eumer Virtual Encyclopedia, (nd). Taken from eumed.net
- Politics section of Political Values, Wikipedia in English, April 16, 2018. Taken from wikipedia.org
- What is Liberty ?, Lebertarianism Website, February 24, 2012. Taken from libertarianism.com
- Security, Wikipedia in English, April 12, 2018. Taken from wikipedia.org
- What is Sovereignty, J. Williams, (nd). Taken from study.com
- Social Equality, Wikipedia in English, April 17, 2018. Taken from wikipedia.org
- Wealth, Wikipedia in English, April 2, 2018. Taken from wikipedia.org