I've been following the Murdoch implosion with epic schadenfreude, and, in slogging through the British press, I keep running across the British Values Survey and its new sociological categorization of persons according to values rather than class. This new model is called the Cultural Dynamics Values Modes Model - VM, for short.
Since the VM is loosely based on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, it can be expected to yield useful information about other Western populations in addition to Great Britain (others have challenged Maslow's universality.)
In these new BVS-based categories of "Settler" "Prospector" and "Pioneer", I am guessing many Kossacks will end up under the "Pioneer" category. And if we do, ok, so what?
Diaries and comments on the gap between Kossack expectations and Democratic politicians' performance are too numerous to count, and probably make up between a third and a half of the content on DK, at least. Is it possible that there is such a misperception because the media, consultants, and pollsters are relying on outdated sociological models? The people who created the the BVS seem to think so in Britain's case - what about ours?
A new piece of work by the left-leaning Institute for Public Policy Research documents the shift and argues that no political party shows signs of fully understanding modern Britain.
First bankers and sub-prime finance; then MPs and sub-prime expenses; and now Murdoch and sub-prime journalism. This much we know.
It is at this point that sociologists normally reach for samples of opinion from swing voters and core voters, from the upper, middle and working classes. But this is a very old school way to slice and dice the country. Graeme Cooke, at one time head of David Miliband's brains trust, has since been working on a thesis that the electorate has changed as much as the challenges for politicians.
He has analysed the British Values Survey and broken us all down into three types: Pioneers, Prospectors and Settlers. These are dispositions, not policy proclivities. These are the new tribes, and they do not have life-long loyalties to political parties.
Since much of these values workings appear to be happening at the subconscious level, not only do the media and politicians not understand the electorate and what motivates them, it's possible that we do not fully understand our own motivations.
Politicians and media on both sides of the pond seem surprised at the depth and breadth of the Murdoch scandal and its aftermath. Like others here, I am only surprised that reality has broken through for once. Why is their reality so different from ours?
I urge you to read about the VM and see what you think. The three categories are further broken down into four subcategories, as you can see in the poll below. I found the whole thing intriguing.
A quick review brought up the following for me:
1. I suspected I was a Pioneer (after taking the quiz, I am, indeed, a Pioneer).
2. The description of Prospectors seems to better fit the DLC crowd.
3. These folks are categorizing us in order to influence us. They are media and political campaign consultants, after all. Isn't it a good idea to know where you stand with them and what that means?
4. Might it be possible to use this model as an organizing principle of our own, to strategize how to influence other groups and politicians to guide them along our own line of thinking?
Read the links, take the test and see what comes up for you. And then, if you like, answer the poll.