Community Values Scale Validation

Abstract

In 2009, the Uranium Development Partnership (UDP) put forth recommendations about how Saskatchewan could better utilize its uranium resources. A qualitative analysis of written stakeholder responses was conducted and four value clusters were revealed (traditional market values, green market values, deep ecology values, and sustainability values; Dolter & Arbuthnott, 2010). Measurement of environmental concern has typically been addressed within the areas of risk perception (e.g., worldview/identity grid; Kahan & Brahman, 2006), values research (e.g., New Environmental Paradigm; Dunlap, Van Liere, Mertig, & Jones, 1990), and temporal concern (e.g., Consideration of Future Consequences; Strathman, Gleicher, Boninger & Edwards, 1994); however, the four values revealed in the stakeholder responses spanned these three directions. This suggests that current measurement instruments may not provide an adequate assessment of all value clusters. The purpose of this study is to assess the reliability and validity of the proposed scale and to assess whether the relationship between the four values and the UDP recommendations generalizes beyond the stakeholders of the public consultation.