심리과학연구소 92년도 결산보고 (93년 3월 제1차 운영위원회 보고의 일부임)

The Institute of Psychological Science Colloquim(No. 1) German Unification and Value Change

I) Tradition and innovation are important in each society. They are closely to valeus beingsbared in a society and its surgroups. Modes of coping with problems strongly depend on the adeqacy of the balance of tradition and innovation. 2) Values are acquired in the process of socialization. If the conditions of socialzation differ largely, the assumption is plausible that different values/value systems will emerge during the indoviduals socialization. As to the German case, two basically different social and political system exited, and thus plausibly two different systems of socialization. Therefore the emergence of differing value systems can be hypothesized. 3) Empirical research, however, demonstrated that the young generation in east and west to a large extent accepts the same values(See E. G. The large scale shell youth survey 1992). 4) As a model to describe and better understand the impact of change, the concept of socio-political paradigms(See Table 1), which describe the means and ways the individuals interprete and construct their social reality, appears to be more adequate. It conceptualizes the chance of values within the framework of a change of the paradigms. This means that value change is seen as an epiphenomenon of societal change(See Table 2). 5) A psychological core element of the paradigms is socio-moral reasoning(cf. L. Kohlberg). This is activated when value conflicts arise. The conflict resolution when indeviduals tend to use depends on their level of socio-moral reasoning (See Table 3). 6) In the process of the German unification many conflicts arise which are of socio-political nature. The way in which individuals tend to deal with these conflicts (IE, coping, defending, or even fragmentation) is related to the stage/level of the capacity of the individuals socio-moral judgment. Since the conventional level is most frequent and the situational pressures are high, conventional modes of defending are likely to appear (IE, Denial, regression, construction of enemy images). 7) In summary, a change towards the direction of the traditional paradigm (and the values being associated to it) is likely to prevail in Germany for a substantial period of time. While the new paradigm will still be present and effective (particularly amongst the young, well educated, and economically well situated) the trend towards its establishment, which was characteristic of the recent two decades before the unification, is likely to be reversed. As a consequence, socio-political innovation will less frequently(if at all) be on the agenda of primary political parties and social forces (churches, labour unions etc.) in Germany. Pre-conventional socio-moral behavior in its most horrible form(See the recent murders of turkish citizens in Soligen), represents the most extreme form of fragmentation. The repetition of acts of this kind cannot be excluded.