Valores percibidos en la televisión por adolecentes de diferentes contextos culturales

According to data published in prior research projects, television is emerging as a socializing influence which mediates with family and school in the transmission of values during the socialization of young people. However, there is as yet no consensus regarding what kind of values are actually transmitted and whether or not they coincide with the values that other first-order socializing influences (family and school) aim to transmit to young people. In order to provide information that may help generate knowledge regarding this study aim, this paper seeks to explore the similarities and differences observed in the way that 565 adolescents from Guadalajara (Mexico), Dublin (Ireland), Donostia/San Sebastian and Malaga (Spain) perceive values in the characters from their favorite television shows. Participants were all secondary school students aged between 14 and 19, and the instrument used to record the values perceived in the characters from their favorite television shows was the Value Domain Scale (VAL-TV 0.2). Results were compared in accordance with city and sex. The findings indicate that there are more similarities than differences in the values perceived by adolescents of both sexes from different cities. Nevertheless, one of the cities studied, Dublin, was found to differ more notably from the others; and in relation to sex, adolescent girls from all cities scored higher than boys in the values studied. Finally, the ranking of perceived values was the same for all cities and both sexes, with those referring to openness to change (independence of action and thought) scoring highest in both cases. This was followed by self-transcendence (collective wellbeing), self-promotion (one own interests) and, finally, conservatism (safety and order).