37º IAHS World Congress on Housing: - Universidad de Cantabria

XXXVII <strong>IAHS</strong><strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> on HousingOctober 26 – 29, 2010, Santander, SpainCODE: 644VALUES OF THE PEOPLE AND THE HOUSING PROCESSDr. Mayank MathuAssistant Professor of Physical Planninge-mail: matmayank@gmail.comAbstractThis study is an attempt to relate a socio-scientific phenomenon that is, values with that ofphysical development i.e., housing. The term `values’ may refer to interests, pleasures, likes,preferences, duties, moral obligations, desires, wants, needs, aversions and attractions andmany other modalities of selective orientations. Values, in other words, are found in the largeand diverse universe of selective behavior. However, it is very doubtful that any onedescription can do complete justice to the full range and diversity of recognizablephenomenon. One of the more widely accepted definitions in social science literatureconsiders values to be conceptions of the desirable, the latter being equated with what weought to desire, values regulate impulse satisfaction in accordance with the whole array ofhierarchical enduring goals of the personality, the requirements of both personality and socioculturalsystem of order, the need for respecting the interest of others and of the group as awhole in social living. Values arise out of human experience and hence may be affected byany conditions that affect experience. Although housing provides many needs at varyinglevels, people can weigh each need and category, differently. Values related to housing showwhat is desirable and worthwhile to the occupant. In designing housing policy, it is importantto know whether a value remains constant over time or changes with a household’s situationor community. In measuring values and interpreting the results, value type must beconsidered. Values may also be intrinsic or extrinsic. An intrinsic value is the desirable andself sufficient quality of an experience, while an extrinsic value is the meaning or worthdesired from the relation of one thing to another. Thus intrinsic values are ends in themselves,while extrinsic values are designed for a purpose, this distinction may be applied to housingvalues. Recognizing the need to study housing values, this study, titled as `Values judgmentin housing’ a case study of self financing scheme in New Delhi was taken in which thefollowing factors were identified and taken into consideration: Anthropometrics relates tointernal spaces and private open spaces; Social includes Life style, privacy and security/safety whereas in Psychological aesthetics and prestige were taken. The findings of this studycould help in creating a feedback to the designers and help in preparing better designs for theuser’s satisfaction. This article is based on the thesis study `values judgment in housing’ thatwas undertaken by the author.37º <strong>IAHS</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> On Housing Science 261