Analysis of Attitudes to Student Housing

Chapter ONE
Introduction:
1.1BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Student lodging is an indispensable constituent of the substructure of any university campus. They are even more of import in a private university. It is of import that pupil lodging installations should let pupils to transport out their academic activities freely while promoting societal interaction. Completed residential edifices should non merely be fit for the intent of the users, but besides be able to execute their maps in such ways as to guarantee comparative occupants ’satisfaction ( Liu, 1999 ) .
Research has shown that designers and edifice users’ differ in their criterions or thoughts about the manner edifices should look or run. The designer is normally concerned with aesthetics, economic system, structural stableness, functionality, fulfilling the client ; while the user is chiefly concerned with how best the edifice accommodates his activities.
It is necessary for betterment of the design procedure particularly in structured establishments with the possible to transport out similar design and building undertakings that an rating of the public presentation of their existing installations is carried out. The consequence of certain physical and psychological facets of a edifice on the users’ productiveness can non be understated.
It is necessary that an appraisal of pupil inn installations and their functionality be carried out. This formal rating of the built environment is called “Post Occupancy Evaluation ( POE ) ” and it is the rating of a edifice with accent placed on its functional characteristics instead than the aesthetics, proficient and economical characteristics entirely. Post Occupancy Evaluation aims to enable clients, determination shapers, and operators of assorted installations to supply better environments for clients, residents, and users ( Cubukcu and Isitan, 2011 ) .
Student perceptual experiences can be assessed in footings of both proficient ( i.e. , acoustic and ocular comfort ) and functional ( i.e. , room coatings and room layout ) demands. However, proficient and functional edifice public presentations are considered as two different facets that can be used to explicate student residential satisfaction ( Hassanain, 2008 cited in Akinluyi, 2013 ) .
Similar surveies ( Foubert et Al, 1998, Amole, 2009a & A ; Khozaei et al. , 2010 ) in utilizing a different attack have factored in direction of the installations, this includes elements such as inn regulations and fees and the attitudes of inn employees. Several factors can be used to measure overall satisfaction with pupil lodging, including physical variables such as installations and excess services ( Hassanain, 2008 ) . Social variables such as pupil relationships, herding and privateness may besides be considered as factors used to measure user satisfaction.
This systematic method evaluates the success and failures of completed design undertakings. Such information could be utilized:

To better the completed and future design undertakings by better informing the interior decorators of the users’ demands and better bing edifice public presentation by modifying care and direction patterns.
To make an indifferent memory for specific types of design undertakings ( such as infirmary and airdrome design or design of a university campus ) .
To develop design guidelines for future design undertakings.

1.2STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Many edifices do non execute as planned, some end up functioning an wholly different intent from that for which ground they were constructed. In some instances this can impact on running costs and care, user and client satisfaction and public presentation, wellness, safety and comfort.
Harmonizing to Akinluyi ( 2013 ) , for repetition building clients such as universities, larning from, and rectifying past errors in design and commissioning of edifices can be highly cost-efficient and better the public presentation of the establishment in general, its installations in peculiar and greatly better all-around productiveness of the pupils.
Housing installations, as before stated, is particularly of import in universities and it is of import that these installations meet the demands of the user for maximal user satisfaction. Harmonizing to Awolesi ( 2008 ) , designs are being constrained by utmost boundaries of cost and economic system, aesthetic considerations, the infinite demands of the clients, or as prevalent in establishments, the demand to do the edifice reflect the bing architectural manner of its immediate environment or typology and this consequences in constructions that sometimes compromise criterions and most times do non see the demands of the proposed users.
While there is a demand for considerations of economic system, aesthetics and the of import demands of the client, the users’ demands do non hold to be sacrificed wholly. Residents’ satisfaction is one of the major determiners of edifice public presentation, quality and the success of the design undertaking.
This survey seeks to analyze the degree of satisfaction of pupils with the lodging installations provided by the school. In peculiar, it investigates the first male and female inns built by the Physical Planning and Development Department of the Covenant University and the degree of satisfaction of pupils with the infinites provided within the halls.
1.3RESEARCH QUESTIONS

How functional are the infinites provided within the halls?
How do pupils react to the infinites in footings of satisfaction?
Does gender impact the degree of user satisfaction of pupils?

1.4AIM AND OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this survey is to measure the station tenancy use of two of the pupil inn installations in Covenant University as it relates to the degree of satisfaction of the pupils with the inn installations and how much these responses are determined by the gender of the pupils.
To accomplish this purpose, the more specific aims are:

To analyze the inn installations ( viz. Esther Hall and Peter Hall ) in footings of users’ satisfaction.
To measure the students’ usage and response to these installations and the infinites within.
To analyze how much this reaction is determined by the gender of the pupils.
To analyze the quality of the students’ lodging based on the users’ responses and satisfaction with the installations.

1.5Justification OF THE STUDY
This survey is of import because the pupil lodging installations are an of import portion of the built environment in university campuses. This is particularly so in private universities peculiarly where it is compulsory for all pupils to shack on the campus in inn installations provided by the school.
It will measure to what extent the gender of pupils affect the usage and perceptual experience of the infinites within the inn installations and the installations in general and how these infinites can be better adapted to accommodate the demands and demands of the different genders without giving economic system in design and execution ( i.e. building ) . This survey will assist to measure the success of completed design undertakings and measure the extent to which the designers’ purpose and outlooks are aligned with the users’ demands.
1.6Significance OF THE STUDY
The survey is aimed at measuring the degree of user satisfaction of pupils in Esther and Peter Halls in Covenant University. It will measure how good the edifices match the demands of the male and female pupils and place ways to better public presentation and fittingness for intent.
It will besides analyze the consequence of gender on user response to infinites in footings of satisfaction. The survey will therefore add to the organic structure of cognition every bit good as inform University decision makers on how to student inns can be better designed to accommodate the demands of the pupils. It will besides supply feedback on the degree of satisfaction of the users of the pupil inns being studied.
1.7Scope OF THE STUDY
The survey will measure the types of inn installations available in Covenant University with focal point on Esther Hall and Peter Hall. Covenant University is a private university located in Sango-Ota. It was founded in 2002 by the Living Faith Commission in Canaan land, Ota. The University has 4 chief colleges. They are: the College of Business, College of Leadership and Developmental Studies, College of Science and Technology and College of Engineering. The University is good planned with clearly defined subdivisions such as the residential country, academic country, and recreational countries amongst others. The University is to the full residential ( for the pupils ) with 10 inn installations ( 5 male and 5 female inns ) provided to decently house the increasing pupil population.
The male inns are the: Peter Hall, Paul Hall, John Hall, Joseph Hall and Daniel Hall.
The female inns are: Esther Hall, Mary Hall, Deborah Hall, Lydia Hall and Dorcas Hall.
Esther and Peter Hall are the oldest inn installations, built when the school was founded in 2002. These halls have the same design but are occupied by pupils of the two genders.
The survey will measure the public presentation of the infinites provided in these halls based on the degree of pupil satisfaction.
1.8LIMITATIONS OF STUDY
Due to the nature of the survey, the following are the restrictions that were experienced:

The rawness of the research worker.
The unanticipated response of users/occupants.
Insufficient clip. The clip restraint was a major restriction.

1.9RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This survey will basically utilize primary beginnings of information. Data was obtained from occupant pupils across assorted programmes of survey within the capable halls of abode utilizing structured questionnaires.
Randomization is achieved by administering these questionnaires across the assorted wings and floors in the halls of abode in a systematic manner. There are 7 wings in each of the halls with 4 floors and 8 suites on each floor, except for A and G wings with 5 suites on each floor. The questionnaires will be distributed to at least 2 pupils on each floor.
1.10DEFINITION OF TERMS
Appraisal:
This is a opinion of a edifice based on certain selected standards.
Constructing Performance:
This is the mode in which a edifice maps. It has different facets some of which are quantitative in nature while others are qualitative. Some of these facets are ; energy direction, life-cycle costing, illuming, acoustics, humidness, thermic comfort and spacial relationships.
Gender:
Gender may be defined as the belongingss that distinguish beings on the footing of their generative functions.
Post-Occupancy Evaluation:
Preiser et Al. ( 1988 ) defines Post-Occupancy Evaluation as ‘the procedure of measuring edifices in a systematic and strict mode after they have been built and occupied for some time’ . Friedman ( Friedman et al, 1978 ) defines Post Occupancy Evaluation from an anthropometric position as “an assessment of the grade to which a designed scene satisfies and supports explicit and implicitly human demands and values of those for whom a edifice is designed”
Student Housing:
Khozaei et Al. ( 2010 ) define pupil lodging as a dumbly populated constructing with many suites in which each room contains several beds. Harmonizing to this definition, pupil lodging installations provide kiping and populating quarters, normally without private bathrooms or lavatories, for a big figure of people. It normally consists of many communal infinites such as baths, washs and in some instances common suites. Student lodging goes by many names, such as halls of abode, pupil residence hall and inns.
User Satisfaction:
User satisfaction is a procedure of mensurating what was received and what was expected. It is the positive experience expressed by residents when their lodging installation meets their outlooks for unit characteristics, services and installations provided.