The role of perceived self-transcendence values in forming functional relationships with professionals.
Adi Amit, Shani Oppenheim-Weller, Yuval Karmel
The British journal of social psychology July 1, 2025 DOI: 10.1111/bjso.12897 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 665 |
| Population | Adults in the USA and Israel in client-therapist or employee-manager relationships |
| Keywords | Management Perceived values Relationships Therapy Working alliance |
| Key findings | Perceived self-transcendence of professionals predicts stronger relationships with clients and employees, mediated by perceptions of warmth. |
Abstract
Existing research into values and relationship formation highlights the role of individuals' own values or value similarity between the parties. We consider the formation of functional relationships with professionals, which cannot be fully explained by documented value-based mechanisms. Instead, we examine the role of professionals' values as perceived by others. We study two occupations that require forming relationships yet are characterized by opposing value profiles: therapists and managers, who are prototypically high in self-transcendence and self-enhancement values, respectively. We show that: (a) client-therapist and employee-manager relationships are stronger the more the professional is perceived as prioritizing self-transcendence (Study 1, N = 191, USA); (b) perceived self-transcendence of managers contributes to relationship quality beyond employee personal values and employee-manager value similarity (Study 2, N = 177, IL); and (c) perceptions of warmth mediate the link between perceived self-transcendence and relationship formation (Study 3, N = 297, USA). Our discussion further highlights the importance of perceived values.