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Table 2 Rank order (1–10) of the freely mentioned virtues in 14 nations, frequencies are indicated below the virtue

From: Are virtues national, supranational, or universal?

Rank order Nation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Austria Honesty Helpfulness Kindness Reliability Openness Punctuality Tolerance Ambition Resolution Humour
N = 276 169 80 79 68 47 45 42 29 27 27
61% 29% 29% 25% 17% 16% 15% 11% 10% 10%
Czech Republic Resolution Reliability Courage Wisdom Openness Helpfulness Tolerance Honesty Respect Punctuality
N = 231 58 43 42 30 27 23 22 19 19 16
25% 19% 18% 13% 12% 10% 10% 8% 18% 7%
France Generosity Courage Honesty Kindness Respect Empathy Patience Altruism Smartness Openness
N = 213 55 52 52 41 38 30 28 21 20 16
26% 24% 24% 19% 18% 14% 13% 9% 9% %
Great Britain Kindness Honesty Humour Happiness Respect Resolution Patience Helpfulness Empathy Openness/Trust
N = 149 68 34 34 26 24 19 18 17 17 16
46% 23% 23% 17% 16% 13% 12% 11% 11% 11%
Germany Honesty Openness Reliability Respect Tolerance Kindness Helpfulness Humour Punctuality Justice/Joy
N = 220 157 80 67 66 63 58 50 32 30 25
  71% 36% 30% 30% 29% 26% 23% 15% 14% 11%
Hong Kong Honesty Courtesy Tolerance Consideration Optimism Responsibility Resolution Self-confidence Respect Modesty
N = 101 30 13 12 12 11 11 11 10 10 10
30% 13% 12% 12% 11% 11% 11% 10% 10% 10%
India Diligence Kindness Joy Dynamism Humour Love Intelligence Caring Honesty Reliability/Courage
N = 152 27 13 12 12 12 11 11 9 9 9
18% 9% 8% 8% 8% 7% 7% 6% 65 6%
Malaysia Honesty Respect Happiness Love Kindness Helpfulness Optimism Courtesy Responsibility Faith
N = 212 35 26 23 22 21 20 15 14 14 14
17% 12% 11% 10% 10% 9% 7% 7% 7% 14%
Mexico Respect Honesty Happiness Responsibility Love Peace Friendship Certainty Tolerance Loyalty/ Empathy
N = 146 54 38 31 30 26 19 19 13 12 10
37% 26% 21% 20% 18% 13% 13% 9% 8% 7%
Netherlands Respect Kindness Honesty Helpfulness Social Openness Joy Tolerance Reliability Responsibility
N = 660 1 203 201 175 129 77 64 58 58 57 56
31% 30% 27% 20% 12% 10% 9% 9% 9% 8%
Norway Openness Empathy Kindness Honesty Optimism Humour Social Consideration Patience Helpfulness/Caring
N = 190 72 55 52 48 44 32 31 30 23 23
38% 29% 27% 25% 23% 17% 16% 16% 12% 12%
Poland Openness Honesty Respect Tolerance Optimism Communicativeness Empathy Resolution Kindness Humor
N = 163 52 31 26 24 21 19 19 18 17 17
32% 19% 16% 15% 13% 12% 12% 11% 10% 10%
Spain Respect Love Honesty Friendship Happiness Joy Justice Solidarity Tolerance Trust
N = 203 86 44 38 32 23 17 15 14 13 13
42% 22% 19% 16% 11% 8% 7% 7% 6% 6%
United States Honesty Kindness Caring Respect Empathy Patience Openness Modesty Love Humor/Diligence
N = 191 105 57 36 31 28 26 24 22 21 20
55% 30% 19% 16% 15% 14% 13% 12% 11% 10%
  1. 1For the Netherlands, we disposed of answers to this particular question from an additional comparable group (N = 289) of higher educated respondents and added these to the sample for the current study (N = 371).
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