Shared living space for students : the role of background and experience

Abstract

Individual student satisfaction rates with shared space in student housing vary. Assuming that sharing spaces is a trend towards a more sustainable way of life, there is need to have an understanding of the ways it can be more acceptable for those involved. This survey is focused on the role of the background and experience of students in the acceptability of using shared space. Analysis indicates that many parameters like economic situation, duration of living in student housing, educational field, family size and even the size of the home city can influence an individual’s perception of and adaptation to shared space. On the other hand, it seems that shared spaces, where there are more similarities in individual student backgrounds are more successful. The survey results also show students with prior experience of living in dorms and those coming from larger/poorer families and small home cities are usually more satisfied with shared spaces than those who have never lived in a dorm before or come from small/richer families and larger home cities. The results of this survey can be helpful for both designers of future shared spaces and dorm managers who want to organise more effective use of shared spaces.