The Cultural Creatives:
Paul Ray’s Newest Values Survey on the Emerging Wisdom Culture

by Corinne McLaughlin
 

This summer Dr. Paul Ray, co-author of The Culture Creatives and former Chief of Policy Research on Energy Conservation for the Canadian Department of Energy, announced the astounding results of his latest Values Survey to members of the  Partnershift, of which our Center for Visionary Leadership is a member.[1]  Our Center had sponsored Paul Ray’s groundbreaking Cultural Creatives launch in Washington DC in 2000 where he announced that 50,000 million Americans are both inner-directed and socially concerned, and embrace values such as environmentalism, spirituality and feminism.[2]  He called them “the Cultural Creatives.”  My husband Gordon and I later worked with Ray to present seminars on The New Civilization in the San Francisco area.

Ray was recently awarded a $100,000 grant to study how American culture is changing.  He surveyed 2000 Americans in March 2008 who answered 500 questions for the survey   conducted by TNS, the world’s largest commercial research house. The questionnaire was designed to focus primarily on American’s values beliefs and desires for their future, for their country and for the world, as that design yielded very precise, but emotionally powerful statements. He found that Cultural Creative values are embraced by the younger Millennium Generation, as well as by the Baby Boomer Generation.

Contrary to what the mainstream press reports, Ray found that the great majority of Americans are ready for positive action for the greater good and on behalf of the whole planet.  For example:

87% agree that “We need to treat the planet as a living system.”

81% agree that “Corporations must take more responsibility for their impact on global warming.”

62% agree that “The earth is headed for an environmental catastrophe unless we change.”

75% agree that “People need to work for the good of the planet, for it is our only home.”

68% agree that “At this time in history we need to see this is all one planet and one humanity.”

56% agree that “Our materialistic way of life can be replaced by a new, more hopeful one.”

51% agree that “I’m willing to do volunteer work as part of a commitment to help save the planet.”

34% agree that “I feel that a new American culture is growing out of the cracks on the old one.”
 

Ray also found a tremendous interest in the inner life and spiritual values:

44% agree that: “Finding my purpose in life, rather than making money is very or extremely important.”

41% agree that “It’s important to have an inner spiritual life; to connect with the sacred, regardless of religions.”

29% agree that “Finding more time for quiet meditation and a more inner life is very or extremely important.”

Ray notes that the questions were worded as closely as possible to the blunt, emotionally-laden way that real people express these values.  He says this survey will be valid for five years, as sociologists have found that values and world views change much more slowly than the typical attitudes measured in typical polls.  Values research is the best predictor of what people will actually do—far better than demographics, according to Ray.

Surprisingly, Ray also discovered that there’s only about a 5% difference in values between different parts of the country—even between Dallas, TX and Seattle, Washington.  He found that large majorities of Americans are finally waking up to our situation in the world and to the reality of our global climate crisis. 

Ray found that 36% or more of the population don’t identify with either left or right, and are part of a whole new ideological dimension, which he calls the “Political North” based on a new political compass.  He sees them as “new progressives” who are post-modern and post-industrial. If mobilized, they could wield enormous moral, social and political influence, and shape elections. Ray, with his partner, Jim Garrison (Director of The State of the World Forum and The Wisdom University), are working with Netroots—the international community of grassroots bloggers--to publicize this new Values Survey widely and to mobilize the Political North into a coherent political force.  Digg.com sponsored their presentation on their latest work at the Big Tent at the recent Democratic Convention. The key, they say, is to bring a much needed solution-oriented mindset into a population that has been more interested in idealism than practical realism.

(For more information, contact Paul Ray at paulhray@gmail.com)