Values of veteran Israelis and new immigrants from the former Soviet Union: a facet analysis

Abstract

"Grounded on the formal faceted definition of values introduced by Levy & Guttman (1974), a mapping sentence was constructed to define values as guiding principles. Guided by the Facet Theory approach, the perceptual structure of the value system as well as value preferences are reviewed in a comparative perspective: veteran Israelis vis-à-vis new immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU). The data are part of a comprehensive study on Israeli society (Levy, Levinsohn & Katz 2002), conducted between June 1999 and January 2000. Two samples were investigated by means of face-to-face interviews: a national sample of Jewish Israeli adults, consisting of 2,466 respondents, and a comparable representative sample of FSU immigrants, consisting of 373 respondents. FSU immigrants attribute less importance than do veteran Israelis to each of the values under study, but they do not differ much in their value preferences. Both groups share a basic similar circular structure of values (a radex) specified by the orientations of the values, thus replicating earlier studies on values. Differences in a few details are discussed." (author's abstract)