Essay On Social Value Orientation

Conflicts between the self and the other are so prevalent in everyday life, that has been suggested that managing these dilemmas is one of the biggest challenges faced by government groups, friends, family and close partners (Van Lange, Cremer, Dijk, & Vugt, 2007). Van Lange, Otten, De Bruin, & Joireman (1997) discusses that traditional research assumes that when contemplating these conflicts, most decisions are made to benefit the self with little or no regard for others. This is known as rational self-interested. However, more recent research has revealed the theory of interdependence, which assumes there are considerations for joint outcomes in when dealing with said conflicts (Van Lange et al., 2007; Van Lange, Bekkers, Schuyt, & Vugt, 2007). The theory uses social value orientation (SVO) to categorise the ways in which people approach conflicts of the self and other. This study was conducted to investigate if SVO could predict people’s decisions in situations such as environmental, political or social issues, where their decisions could affect a large number of unknown people. This was done by testing the participant’s likelihood to choose public or private transport.

SVO is widely measured by the Triple Dominance Measure with research over the years revealing three consistent SVO groups: Prosocial – those who will maximise benefits for both themselves and others, Individualist – those who will maximize benefits for themselves with no regard for others and Competitor – those who not only wish to maximize their own benefit, but hold an advantage over others (Van Lange, Otten, De Bruin, & Joireman,