Human values include respect, acceptance, benevolence, consideration, appreciation, empathy and fraternity, and form a growing scale of attention to others, of human warmth.
The human values to focus on depend on the context:
- Between teacher and pupil, the ones that will enable pupils to flourish are consideration, appreciation and empathy.
- In situations of diversity (cultural, physical, gender, etc.), the values that will help reduce tensions and misunderstandings are openness, inclusion, fairness and welcome. These stem from respect and consideration.
- In the family and as a couple, you’ll enjoy affection and love.
When it comes to these values between groups, communities and societies, we’re talking about social values.
When it comes to relations between individuals and authorities, we’re talking about values such as life, peace, security, freedom, justice, democracy… known as fundamental values or universal values. These values are protected by universal human rights (specified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UN, 1948, and in the vast majority of national constitutions). Respect for them depends in particular on the human values of the authorities.
From these human values, it becomes possible to put into practice ethical values such as justice, integrity, the refusal of violence and the prohibition of killing. Indeed, human values convey a positive emotional impulse that reinforces the rationality of moral values.
These are the human values that enable us to live together in harmony and make a personal contribution to peace. They serve as a tool for managing personal human relationships, and as a peacemaker when tensions rise. They are at the root of life skills (emotional, social, reflective).