Value Descriptors
The purpose of an issue analysis is to identify values and analyze how they contribute to the issue. There are many reasons people think and feel the way they do. One factor is their personal values. Values are the worth or importance someone attributes to something or someone.
The descriptors below may be helpful as you analyze issues. These statements attempt to name and define values. That might be held by individuals. The definitions, as well as the list itself, should not be considered complete. They are simply tools to help you in the complex task of identifying values.
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Aesthetic |
form, composition, and color through the human senses. |
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Economic |
the use and exchange of money, materials, and/or services. |
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Ecological |
natural biological systems and principles. |
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Educational |
the accumulation, use, and communication of knowledge. |
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Egocentric |
self-centered needs and fulfillment. |
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Environmental |
human activities in terms of quality of natural resources. |
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Ethical/moral |
present and future human responsibilities, rights and wrongs, and ethical standards. |
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Ethnocentric |
the fulfillment of ethnic/cultural goals. |
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Health and Safety |
the maintenance of positive human physical conditions. |
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Legal |
national, state, or local laws; law enforcement; law suits. |
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Political |
the activities, functions, and policies of governments and their agents. |
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Recreational |
human leisure activities. |
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Scientific |
the process of empirical research; knowledge gained by empirical study. |
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Social |
shared human empathy, feeling, and status. |
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Technological |
the use of technology for human/societal goals. |