Modernizzazione, sicurezza esistenziale e cambiamento culturale

Survey data from countries containing over 90 percent of the world's population demonstrate that, in recent decades, rising levels of economic and physical security have been reshaping human values and motivations, and thereby transforming societies. Economic and physical insecurity are conducive to xenophobia, strong in-group solidarity, authoritarian politics and rigid adherence to traditional cultural norms; conversely secure conditions lead to greater tolerance of outgroups, openness to new ideas and more egalitarian social norms. Analysts working from different perspectives have described these cultural differences as Collectivism versus Individualism, Materialism versus Postmaterialism, Survival versus Self-expression values, or Autonomy versus Embeddedness, but they all tap a common dimension of cross-cultural variation that reflects different levels of existential security. [Publisher's text].