Continuity and change in values in midlife: testing the age stability hypothesis

BACKGROUND/STUDY CONTEXT: The "age stability" hypothesis suggests that adults have significant continuities in values over time, whereas the "situational influence" hypothesis suggests that change continues, especially in response to new events and experiences. Deeply ingrained, terminal values may be more stable than other, more instrumental, values. Less research examines changing values than examines changing personality traits and attitudes.

Hypotheses were tested with data from A Study of Leisure During Adulthood (ASOLDA), a 9-year panel study of middle-aged adults (average age of 45 at the beginning of data collection). Mixed-model regressions and descriptive statistics were used to examine changes and stability over time in global values, measured by the List of Values (LOV), and instrumental values related to leisure.

Significant correlations were found in both terminal and instrumental values over time (autocorrelations ranging from .13 to .23). There was no linear or curvilinear pattern of change over time. Respondents reported a wide range of positive and negative life events and variations over time in reflections on their life structure, but these variations were unrelated to changes in values.

Results support the age stability hypothesis, rather than the situational influence hypothesis, with similar results for both terminal and instrumental values. It is suggested that the consistent values of respondents may have helped them weather the wide range of often-difficult circumstances many reported experiencing. Future research should examine this hypothesis.