Study title

Values and cultural changes in societies all over the world.Basic values and beliefs in a wide variety of areas. Broad topics covered are leisure, work, meaning and purpose of life, family life, and contemporary social issues. In the section on leisure respondents were asked whether they preferred to spend their leisure time relaxing or being active, about groups and associations to which they belonged, how often they read a daily newspaper, the number of hours watching television, whether they experienced feelings such as loneliness, boredom, restlessness, depression and happiness, if they felt other people could be trusted, if they felt they had free choice and control over their lives, and if they were satisfied with life overall. Topics covered relating to work include aspects important in a job, pride in work, satisfaction with present job and financial situation, and owner/state/employee management of business. A wide range of items was included on the meaning and purpose of life, such as respondent's view on the value of scientific advances, things in life that were worth sacrificing everything for, opinions on good and evil, and religious behaviour and beliefs. Respondents were queried regarding closeness among family members, their level of satisfaction with their home life, if they shared the same attitudes toward such things as religion, morality, politics, and sexual mores with their partner and parents, their views on marriage and divorce, and qualities important for a child to learn. In the final section on social issues, areas covered include the respondent's interest in politics, opinion of various forms of political action, self-placement on a political left, right scale and party identification, the most important aims for their country, alcohol and alcoholism, confidence in various civil and governmental institutions, and whether they felt divorce, abortion, suicide, cheating on taxes, lying, and other such actions were ever justified....