The K factor, societal hypometropia, and national values: A study of 71 nations

• A dimension of subjective culture is extracted from World Values Survey data.
• The dimension is defined by important values for children as described by their parents.
• It is significantly correlated with “societal hypometropia” (similar to a K factor).
• Differences on societal hypometropia/K factor are embedded in national values.

A number of studies have used national behavior-related statistics to propose measures of a so-called “K factor”, or societal “hypometropia”. The reported variants of this dimension reflect societal differences in mating strategies, risk-acceptance, and aspects of time orientation, such as delay of gratification. Until now, no clear analog to this dimension had been found in paper-and-pencil studies of subjective national culture, focusing on values, beliefs, attitudes, or other worldviews. The present study analyzes values for children from the World Values Survey. A factor analysis across 71 nations partly replicates Inglehart’s two dimensions of national culture and extracts a third factor, defined by importance of thrift, responsibility, and independence versus obedience. It creates a clear contrast between East Asia and Africa and resembles a somewhat similar dimension of national culture by the Chinese Culture Connection. It is also associated with societal hypometropia. Thus, the K factor/hypometropia has an analog in national values.