Week2: Superordinate Goals

Types of Superordinate Goals

• Superordinate goals aim to fulfill our fundamental needs which are biological, psychological, and/or social.

• They allow us to survive and thrive in our environment.

• Frameworks for understanding superordinate goals include:

  • Personality Traits: Stable characteristics differing from person to person, arising from genetic and environmental factors.

  • Self-Concept: Thoughts and feelings about oneself to answer "Who am I?"

• Schwartz Values Framework: Chosen for its overlapping relevance with personality traits and self-concepts, essential for understanding goals and motivation.

Schwartz Values

• Shalom Schwartz identified 19 values that:

  • Serve as guiding forces in our lives.

  • Are universal across societies.

  • Transcend specific situations.

• Values can be categorized by dimensions:

  • Dimension 1: Growth vs. Self-Protection

    • Growth values motivate when free of anxiety.

    • Self-protection values aim to shield from anxiety.

  • Dimension 2: Personal Focus vs. Social Focus

    • Personal Focus: Concerns outcomes for oneself.

    • Social Focus: Concerns outcomes for others/institutions.

Schwartz Values Overview

• Personal Focus (Growth): Self-direction (thought), self-direction (action), stimulation, hedonism.

• Social Focus (Growth): Universalism (tolerance), universalism (nature), universalism (concern), benevolence (dependability), benevolence (caring).

• Growth + Self-Protection: Achievement, humility.

• Self-Protection: Power (dominance), power (resources), face, security (personal), conformity (interpersonal), conformity (rules), tradition, security (societal).

Schwartz Values: Self-Direction (Thought)

• Dimension: Personal focus | Growth

• Represents the desire for freedom to generate one's own ideas and develop abilities.

• Valued traits include:

  • Creativity

  • Original ideas

  • Personal improvement

  • Self-learning

  • Forming personal opinions.

• Example: Lisa Simpson - practicing the saxophone is a superordinate goal aligned with her aspiration for self-direction (thought).

Schwartz Values: Self-Direction (Action)

• Dimension: Personal focus | Growth

• Represents the desire for independence in actions.

• Valued traits include:

  • Decision-making

  • Self-reliance

  • Freedom of choice.

• Example: Bart Simpson - his focal goal of subverting authority aligns with his desire for self-direction (action).

Schwartz Values: Stimulation

• Dimension: Personal focus | Growth

• Represents the desire for excitement, novelty, and challenges.

• Valued traits include:

  • An exciting life

  • New experiences

  • Adventure.

• Example: Bart Simpson seeks stimulation through skateboarding.

Schwartz Values: Hedonism

• Dimension: Personal focus | Growth

• Represents the desire for pleasure.

• Valued traits include:

  • Fun

  • Enjoyment of life's pleasures.

• Example: Homer Simpson’s superordinate goal of eating donuts illustrates hedonism.

Schwartz Values: Achievement

• Dimension: Personal focus | Growth and Self-Protection

• Represents the desire for recognition as successful.

• Valued traits include:

  • Admiration for accomplishments

  • Ambition.

• Example: Martin Prince seeks to be admired for his intelligence.

Schwartz Values: Power (Dominance)

• Dimension: Personal focus | Self-Protection

• Represents the desire to control others.

• Valued traits include:

  • Influencing others

  • Having them do one's bidding.

• Example: Nelson Muntz aspires to rule the playground.

Schwartz Values: Power (Resources)

• Dimension: Personal focus | Self-Protection

• Desire to control events through ownership.

• Valued traits include:

  • Wealth

  • Material possessions.

• Example: Mr. Burns pursuing cost-cutting aligns with power (resources).

Schwartz Values: Face

• Dimension: Personal focus | Self-Protection

• Represents the desire to maintain a public image and avoid humiliation.

• Valued traits include:

  • Dignity

  • Reputation protection.

• Example: Principal Skinner aiming to impress his boss.

Schwartz Values: Security (Personal)

• Dimension: Personal focus | Self-Protection

• Represents the desire for personal safety.

• Valued traits:

  • Avoiding danger

  • Personal security.

• Example: Milhouse Van Houten seeks to avoid bullies.

Schwartz Values: Security (Societal)

• Dimension: Social focus | Self-Protection

• Represents the desire for societal safety.

• Valued traits:

  • National security

  • Social stability.

• Example: Lou wanting to uphold social order through policing.

Schwartz Values: Tradition

• Dimension: Social focus | Self-Protection

• Desire to maintain cultural and family rituals.

• Valued traits:

  • Traditional practices.

• Example: Helen Lovejoy protecting moral values.

Schwartz Values: Conformity (Rules)

• Dimension: Social focus | Self-Protection

• Represents desire to comply with laws and rules.

• Valued traits:

  • Following authority.

• Example: Rod and Todd Flanders respecting authority.

Schwartz Values: Conformity (Interpersonal)

• Dimension: Social focus | Self-Protection

• Desire to avoid harming others.

• Valued traits:

  • Tactful behavior.

• Example: Ned Flanders exemplifies respect towards others.

Schwartz Values: Humility

• Dimension: Social focus | Self-Protection and Growth

• Represents recognition of one's smallness in the grand scheme.

• Valued traits:

  • Humility

  • Satisfaction with current state.

• Example: Maude Flanders being thankful for life.

Schwartz Values: Benevolence (Dependability)

• Dimension: Social focus | Growth

• Represents reliability towards in-group members.

• Valued traits include:

  • Loyalty

  • Trustworthiness.

• Example: Waylon Smithers being trusted by Mr. Burns.

Schwartz Values: Benevolence (Caring)

• Dimension: Social focus | Growth

• Represents the desire to protect the welfare of in-group members.

• Valued traits:

  • Responsiveness to needs of loved ones.

• Example: Marge Simpson helping her family.

Schwartz Values: Universalism (Nature)

• Dimension: Social focus | Growth

• Represents the desire to protect the environment.

• Valued traits:

  • Environmental protection.

• Example: Lisa Simpson being vegetarian to protect animals.

Schwartz Values: Universalism (Tolerance)

• Dimension: Social focus | Growth

• Represents the desire to accept those who differ.

• Valued traits:

  • Promoting harmony.

• Example: Lisa Simpson desiring to understand other cultures.

Schwartz Values: Universalism (Concern)

• Dimension: Social focus | Growth

• Represents the desire for equality and justice.

• Valued traits:

  • Protecting the vulnerable.

• Example: Lisa protesting against injustice.

Importance of Schwartz Values

• Different emphasis on Schwartz values across individuals.

  • Important values serve as guiding principles, while others may be less significant.

• Value emphasis varies due to genetic makeup, upbringing, social class, and culture.

• Core values examples:

  • Lisa Simpson: Self-direction (thought), universalism (nature), universalism (tolerance), universalism (concern).

  • Bart Simpson: Self-direction (action), stimulation.

Leveraging Superordinate Goals

• Three ways to leverage superordinate goals identified:

  1. Demonstrating need discrepancy.

  2. Aligning market offerings with superordinate goals.

  3. Activating superordinate goals.

Demonstrating Need Discrepancy

• Consumers have multiple need discrepancies; focus should be on specific ones to motivate attention.

• Demonstration of the gap between current and desired states can highlight superordinate goals.

• Emphasis can vary in advertising based on the current or desired state of consumers.

Aligning Market Offering with Superordinate Goals

• Market offerings should match superordinate goals that consumers hold to motivate purchasing.

• Market goals can be hierarchically structured:

  • Category goal (e.g., buy a car).

  • Sub-category goal (e.g., low-emissions car).

  • Brand goal (e.g., buy a Tesla).

Activating Superordinate Goals

• Priming can activate important but latent superordinate goals.

• Priming occurs when stimuli exposure influences thoughts and behaviors.

• Semantic priming relies on how concepts are stored and interconnected cognitively.

• Example: activating nature-related goals via exposure to related concepts like trees and environment.