In this paper, we take a tentative first step towards such broad-based comparison using data from one country from the East Asia Barometer (South Korea, 2003) and one from the Afrobarometer (South Africa, 2002) to address the following questions. To what degree have each of these projects developed reliable and valid measures of traditional values specific to their respective cultures? How widely are these values held across these mass publics? And to what extent do traditional values really preclude the development of public support for democracy?