Israel ISF-DFG: The value in values - the role of adolescents’ values in multicultural societies, a comparative longitudinal study (ValYouth)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Peter Titzmann
• Subject Area: Developmental and Educational Psychology
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 561204302

In today’s increasingly diverse societies, understanding how adolescents engage with multicultural environments is essential to foster social cohesion and community bonding. Schools around the world host students from a wide range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds. In this situation, classic intergroup models based on binary ethnic categorizations cannot capture the complexity of interactions anymore, because the spectrum of social identities has broadened. In addition, using traditional ethnic or racial classifications in studies may inadvertently reinforce stereotypes and maintain rigid boundaries. This proposed project moves beyond traditional classifications by examining value profiles—distinct patterns of personal values shared among adolescents—independent of cultural or ethnic heritage. Values, represent core beliefs about appropriate behavior and social evaluation, serve as a key foundation for intergroup relations and are central to social cohesion. Personal Values Theory (Schwartz, 2012), a robust and validated framework, will be used to assess adolescents’ engagement in multicultural contexts by grouping adolescents according to shared values rather than by ethnic categories. This person-oriented approach highlights values as an integrative factor, promoting unity across diverse groups. The project has three main objectives. The first objective is to uncover the dynamics of value development among ethnically diverse adolescents in two multicultural societies, examining stability and change in value profiles over time. The second is to investigate how these value profiles predict adolescents’ multicultural engagement, helping to clarify the role of shared values for the level of involvement in diverse social settings. The third objective is to test the generalizability and specificity of these findings across different cultural contexts. Our research plan includes five work packages (WPs). WP1 (Germany) and WP2 (Israel) involve longitudinal data collections across three waves, studying adolescents aged 12-16 in Germany and Israel (N=1200). These WPs examine the development of value profiles over time and their relationship with multicultural engagement. WP3 (Germany) and WP4 (Israel) focus on effects of value activation on information-seeking behavior regarding multiculturalism using an experimental design, where specific values will be primed in a sample of adolescents (n=504). WP5 will integrate findings from both countries and focus on disseminating the research to academic audiences and participating in the broader scientific dialogue on adolescent value development. This research concept promises to contribute significantly to our understanding of how values develop among youth in diverse societies, and how values profiles relate to multicultural engagement. Our findings could initiate and support targeted interventions and educational programs for youth, promoting multicultural understanding and cohesion.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Israel
• Partner Organisation: The Israel Science Foundation
• Cooperation Partner: Professorin Maya Benish-Weisman, Ph.D.