We explain what a valuation is in a general sense and its meaning depending on the context: economic, critical, personal, artistic and more.
What is an appraisal?
A general assessment consists of evaluating or measuring the value or worth of a thing or a person. By “value”, however, very different things can be understood: price, importance, merit or relevance within a given context. Thus, for example, a department may be valued in one hundred thousand dollarsthat is, buying it costs that amount; but at the same time a person can have a negative feedback among their peersthat is, a bad reputation or esteem among his friends or colleagues.
The word “valuation”, as well as “value” and “value”, come from the Latin root I'll be worth ittranslatable as “have strength” or “have health.” From there comes, for example, the adjective valuable (“who has a lot of courage”, that is, who is strong, brave, brave). It is possible to think that, with the passage of centuries, what was appreciated in the heroes and soldiers of Antiquity gave rise to the word to name that which is generally esteemed, that is, that which is valuable.
Nowadays, it is possible to talk about valuation in very different contexts, but always in reference to assigning the value of something or someone, that is, to its evaluation or appraisal.
See also: Types of securities
Economic valuation
In simple terms, The economic valuation of things refers to their price. That is, its value within a given economic system. For example, the value of a product for sale in a store is the amount of money you must pay to own it.
Similarly, the rental value of an apartment is the amount of money that must be paid monthly to live in it, and the value of a business share is the price of the share in the stock market, which can vary according to the performance of the company. . These are all examples of economic values, and the process of assigning or determining them through objective evaluation is known as appraisal, valuation either assessment.
Artistic evaluation
In the artistic field, works also have a value, determined based on specialized criteria, that is, the criteria of a scholar or an expert in the field. This operation is carried out with two main objectives:
- Determine the artistic relevance of the workthat is, its importance within the aesthetic field and its possible value for future generations, that is, determining whether it is a work that embodies in some sense fundamental, immovable and profound aspects of human existence.
- Determine the price or economic cost of the workoften based on specialized criteria of artistic relevance, rarity, documentary value, supply and demand for works of art, among others.
Critical assessment
A critical assessment is a specialized judgment or evaluation of an object, a product or an idea. The term “critical” refers to the fact that it is done in a systematic, organized manner, appealing to objective criteria and a demonstrable methodology. Thus, a critical assessment It is a technical assessment or related to a specific area of knowledge.
For example, a thesis monograph is submitted to the critical judgment of the jury that evaluates it and who, appealing to their specialized knowledge, critically determines its value, that is, its contribution to the field of studies or to academia in general. The same can be said of a film critic's opinion regarding a film, or of a literary review made by a specialized reader, that is, a literary critic.
Personal rating
A personal assessment is, broadly speaking, an individual or subjective evaluation that someone makes regarding something. It should not be considered a synonym for opinion or position, since valuation necessarily implies, as its name indicates, a value judgment, which must necessarily be supported by some type of argument.
On the other hand, a personal opinion or personal position is a subjective approach that does not merit further debate or explanation, and that tends to be quick and superficial. For example, an opinion can be expressed in terms of “like” or “dislike”, while a personal assessment requires certain arguments and certain analysis.
Thus, in general, to make a personal assessment of a topic, it must be approached through arguments and explanations that justify one's position, avoiding superficial judgments (such as “I like it” or “I don't like it”). Instead, you can weigh the pros and cons of the issue, detail the context from which it is approached and, in general, demonstrate a capacity for personal analysis.
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References
- “Art appraisal” on Wikipedia.
- “Assess” in the Language Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “Radication of the word Valuation” in the Online Spanish Etymological Dictionary.
- “Values and evaluations” in Cinco Días of El País (Spain).
