Some cultures stress individuality more and others stress group identity more. These identity values are expressed symbolically in the design of tools, utensils, clothing, houses, places of worship, and public spaces. The arguments and the differences of opinions come when we start to make selections and design applications to meet these needs. As soon as we do something or make something to fulfill our basic needs we are saying something about our values and our beliefs. When we discuss values we find a continuum of opinions and arguments.
All cultures value both individuality and conformity .
These are conflicting values. Mass produced items tend to show conformity in our culture in spite of the fact that individual freedom of choice is highly valued in our tradition. We value permanence and tradition, but we also value creativity, change, improvement, and relevance to the time in which we live. We know that meeting human needs consumes resources, but we also value caring for resources. We have value conflicts between the economic and status seeking motivations for consumption and the ethics of conservation.