Value congruences, perceived stress, and life-satisfaction in a student sample from the American University of Beirut -

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to assess the importance of value congruence in predicting perceived stress (PS) and life-satisfaction (LS).This thesis hypothesized that value congruence between the individual and their environment promotes LS. Value incongruence, on the other hand, causes stress, which in turn decreases LS. PS was also hypothesized to mediate the relationship between value congruence and LS. Three contexts of comparison were used to assess value congruence, the fit between the individual and his-her parents, fellow university students, and fellow Lebanese nationals. The measures used in the study were the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener et al., 1985), the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen et al., 1983), and the Basic Human Values Scale (Schwartz, 2002). The final sample consisted of 218 American University of Beirut students enrolled in an Introductory Psychology course. The findings of the study only partially supported the hypotheses. There was no relationship between value congruence and perceived stress. Consequently, perceived stress did not mediate the relationship between value congruence and life-satisfaction. Only four value discrepancies predicted LS. Value discrepancies between the self and AUB students on Self-Transcendence; between the self, AUB students, and Lebanese on Self-Enhancement; and self and Lebanese on the Arab value, were positively related to LS. The AUB context proved to be the most important context for the relationship between value congruence and life-satisfaction. The findings of the study suggest that centrality of the value to the interaction between the individual and their environment is more important to life-satisfaction than the magnitude of the discrepancy. It is also important to account for the direction of the value discrepancy. Limitations of the current thesis include the cross-sectional and correlational nature of the study which restrict any conclusions about causation. In addition, the sample is not representative of the general population.