KUZEY KIBRIS TÜRK CUMHURİYETİ VATANDAŞLARININ DEĞER YÖNELİMLERİ

In this study, it is aimed to identify the direction and intensity of value priorities of citizens of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in view of socio-demographic variables and different appearances of religious life. The research is a descriptive study type on survey method. Survey is made through the sectioning approach. General population of survey is the citizens of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the population of study consists of Lefkoşa, Gazimağusa, İskele city centers and peoples of their villages. The sample consists in all of 401 people selected by simple random sampling method, 194 of whom are male, while 207 of whom are female. Schwartz Value Survey is used as the measuring tool. In the research relationship of participant’ value priorities with religious variables are researched, relationship between the value priorities and socio-demographic variables (age, sex, level of education, origin) is examined. In the analysis of data, t-test and Pearson Correlation techniques are used. Research of values that determine the individuals’ and societies’ world view and behavior includes four basic psychological purposes consisting of understanding, description, regression and control. Hence, it can be easily said that the research of value-religiousness of citizens of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus are functional in understanding their ways of self-identification, their worldview, their perception and judgment about the external world, and finally in understanding their relationship with religion. Topic of this survey is to research the relationship and differentiation between Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus citizens’ value preference and level of religiousness, Its aim is to identify the effects of which values the citizens of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus feel more in the life, their socio-demographic variables and level of religiousness differentiates their value preferences. The following questions are tried to be answered in line with the aim of survey. 1. Do the value priorities change in accordance with sex, age, level of education and origin? 2. Do the different images of religiousness affect value priorities? According to data in values of power, achievement, hedonism, stimulation, security and religiousness men get higher points than women, while in the values of self-direction, universalism, benevolence, tradition and conformity women get higher points than men. These results mean that men pay more attention to the values of hedonism and stimulation in comparison with women. The fact that men pay more attention to the values of stimulation and hedonism than women can be explained by the meaning people assigned to sexes and their expectations from them. According to the correlation results that show the relationships between the age and value priorities, there are positively meaningful relationships between age and universalism, tradition, conformity and security (p<.05). On the other hand, the only negative correlation the reaches at the meaningful level is seen in the value of stimulation (p<.05). Considering the fact that the youngest of the participants of the survey is 17 years old, while the oldest one is 70, it is in line with expectations that the value of stimulation is paid more attention as the age get downer, and that the values of universalism, tradition, conformity and security are paid more attention as the age grows older. Because such features as taking a risk, novelty seeking and gaminess are rather correlated with the period of youth, while such features as adherence to conventions, attempts to conserve them, self-control, good health and wishing the goodness of humankind are seen as meaningful for the later ages. It has been identified that as the level of education increases, the values of tradition and religiousness decreases. This situation can be explained by the cumulative effect of positivist process of education, since as the level of education increases, the critical thinking develops, and this bring about the criticism of local elements particularly religion and spirituality with scientific criteria composed in line with the modern paradigms. According to the data showing whether there is a differentiation in the value priorities in line with origin (native or immigrant), in the value of hedonism a significant differentiation is seen for in favor of Natives of Cyprus, while in the value priorities of achievement, conformity, tradition, religiousness a meaningful differentiation at the level of p<.05 is seen in favor of immigrants of Turkey. The fact that the immigrants of Turkey pay much more importance than the Natives of Cyprus to the values of tradition, religiousness, conformity and achievement widely fits in with the expectations. The fact that the ideas and perceptions provided by culture and religion are adopted, that the values in question laying stress on the respect to the traditions are paid importance by the immigrants of Turkey can be explained by the fact that these people are those mostly coming from the country side of Turkey, since the qualities in question accord with the qualities of people who live in Turkey in rural areas where the traditionalism is prevalent. It is noteworthy that in the value orientation of hedonism the natives of Cyprus show a meaningful difference from that of the Cyprian of immigrants of Turkey. It seems that the natives of Cyprus feel much more the affects of consumer society in the globalizing world. When relationship between the different appearance of religious life and value priorities are considered, first the relationships reaching at a negative level of significance between the religious variables and the values of hedonism and stimulation are noticeable. There are inverse relationships between hedonism and “feeling the existence of God”, “performing prayer”, “fasting” and “pray” at the level of p<.01, while “believing the existence of a creator” at the level of p<.05. On the other hand, it appears that there is a negative relationship between the value orientation of stimulation that includes excitement and novelty seeking and “feeling the existence of God” (p<.05). These results can be seen as natural, since in order to reach their models of man and society, religions may bring some measures (orders and prohibitions) with an educatory function and this leads to a determined life thus keeping away from the openness to change. Positive relationships are identified between religious variables and values of benevolence, conformity, security, tradition and religiousness. When these values are considered, their common aspects with benevolence, abstaining from extremism, being balanced and having good relationships with other people which are also recommended and encouraged by religions can explain this relationship. As for the value of universalism, it is seen that it has significant relations, both negative and positive, with the different aspects of religion. While the value of universalism has a negative correlation with “performing prayer”, it has a positive relation with “believing in the existence of a creator” and “pray”. Negative relation can be explained by the fact that the performers of prayer create in-group perception stemming from the sense of belonging, since the fact that the performers of prayer create in-group perception at the same time brings with it the inclination of keeping at arm’s length against out-group. Thus, the fact that the pray feeds the loyalty to in-group can be said to lessens the importance given to the value of universalism that lays stress on all people. However, when it comes to the belief in the existence of God and praying, the same results are not obtained, since the affect of these variables to create in-group sense is not as much evident as performing prayer. From these findings, the following conclusions can be reached; 1. It is identified that between value priorities and sex men, in comparison with women, pay much more importance to hedonism and stimulation. No meaningful difference between the male and female participants is observed in other types of value. 2. It is identified that between age and the values of priorities of universalism, tradition, conformity and security there is a meaningful relations in positive direction. That is, as the age grows older, remarkable increases in the values in question are seen. On the other, the only inverse relation reaching at the meaningful level is seen in the value of stimulation. In other words, as the age gets older, importance given to the value of stimulation decreases. 3. Between the level of education and religiousness and tradition there are remarkable negative relations. In other words, there is a negative correlation between the level of education and tradition and religiousness. 4. When it comes to the differences between origins, it is identified that the Natives of Cyprus pay much more attention to the value of hedonism, while the immigrants of Turkey to the values of achievement, conformity, tradition and religiousness. 5. When the relations between the different aspects of religious life and the value priorities are considered, negative relations in a meaningful level between religious variables and hedonism and stimulation is identified, while positive relations are identified between benevolence, tradition, conformity, security an religiousness, while negative relations are seen between the value of universalism and performing prayer; positive relations are seen between it and praying and fasting.