Human Values

" Values are like fingerprints. Nobody's

are the same , but you leave them

all over everything you do ".

Elvis Presley

" Values aren't buses...... They are not

supposed to get you anywhere.

They are supposed to define

who you are".

Jennifer Cruise

Generally, value has been taken to mean moral ideas, general conceptions or orientations towards the world or sometimes simply interests, attitudes, preferences, needs, sentiments and dispositions. Values are generally received through cultural means especially transmission from parents to children, society at large to the upcoming generation. We should bear in mind that value can be personal or cultural, positive or negative, intrinsic or extrinsic among other transmission from parents to children, society at large to the upcoming generation. We should bear in mind that value can be personal or cultural, positive or negative, intrinsic or extrinsic among other forms of it.

The concept of value is cloudy based on the fact that it can mean several things to several people depending on its usage. Value can be seen as the worth of a thing. It can also be viewed as the estimate or monetary worth of an asset or of having a high opinion about someone or a thing. For example, when someone says " I value my life or I value a book". It means that such a person cherishes or loves his life or book. Values are a person's or society's beliefs about good behaviour and what things are important.

Values are the principles, standards, convictions and beliefs that people adopt as their guidelines in daily activities. Values can also be described as a set of consistent measures and behaviours that individuals choose to practice in the pursuit of doing what is right or what is expected of them by the society.

Values are collective conception of what is considered good, desirable and proper or bad, undesirable and improper in a culture. In simple words, values help to shape our belief about what is good and desirable, it helps to identify that a person's behaviour or action is good or bad. One can often identity the values of a society by nothing which people receive honour and respect and what a society embraces and shuns.

There are many importance attached to Values, below are list of few and they include;

1) Values are general principles that regulate our day to day behaviour. Our lives are guided by principles, standards, beliefs that helps to regulate how we behave in the society day by day, because some people in the society might want to act out of appropriate behaviour but our values help us to control and regulate or behaviour.

2) Values encourages a sense of responsibility and hard-work among citizens which will result in the progress of the society at large. Values are embedded with different forms which include discipline, integrity and hard-work. A person of values will work with this forms which will in turn provide a responsible and hardworking citizens in the society.

3) Values modify our attitudes and feelings towards other people through tolerance of different opinions and behaviour. They influence people's behaviour and serve as criteria for evaluating the actions of others.

Values promote love in the society, a cruel and wicked society is as a result of low level of values. Values assists youths to resist peer pressure in the society.

4) Values guide people towards the achievement of declared objectives. Our values are important because they help us to grow and develop so as to help us to create the future we want to experience.

5) Values promote unity, harmony and cooperation in the society, they build societies, and integrate social relations. Values have a great role to play in the conduct of social life.

Types of Values

• Honesty

• integrity

• Cooperation

• Hard-work

• Patriotism

• Selflessness

• Trust

• Team spirit

• Equality

• and many more

Our values inform our thoughts, words and actions.