| Abstract: | This article analyses value changes in Western Europe in relation to changes in social institutions. Important institutional changes have been that families have become have become smaller and more fragile and the labour market has become larger and more heterogeneous, especially because of the increase in the number of married women having paid jobs. Finally, globalization has resulted in a double trend of heterogenization and localism. These changes have influenced the values of the population in Western Europe. The overall change is an increase in individualization and a more fragmented value system which means, eg, that there are no clear political cleavages. The value changes can be summarized in three processes: from industrial to green values; from authoritarian values to libertarian values; and from church-oriented to personal religious values. These trends suggest that we are approaching a society with a diversity of lifestyles where many value structures are competing. |
