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Introduction
University run student hostels (“dorms” in Iran) often consist of rooms either side of a central corridor. Such hostels are found in most Iranian universities and are still being built. Though a simple and affordable building form, the experience of living in one such dorm for a year indicates that resident students face many problems in their day-to-day living. The spatial organisation and the fact that there are often several residents in one room has led to some students refurnishing their rooms and moving some of their daily activities outdoors, although the experience of sharing space has advantages, such as improving social interactions among students.
Because this building type has a long history and is still prevalent (Rodger and Johnson, 2005), there is a need to study its good and bad points and develop guidelines for its successful refurbishment (Amole, 2009; Hassanain, 2008). This type of student housing is not only popular in Iran as Amole (2008, 2009) investigated similar dorms in Nigeria. This suggests the design guidelines resulting from this study could be used in other countries.
This article presents results of an investigation into an Iranian dorm of this type using Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE) techniques, with a particular focus on how space is shared, both at the level of the whole dorm and the single room. Sharing of space has been discussed as an attribute of sustainability, as it leads to more efficient use of resources (Vale and Vale, 2009, pp. 129-132, 2013, pp. 224-259). However, as Chermayeff and Alexander (1963/1966) observed, as long ago as, the organisation of shared space to obtain adequate community and privacy is not easy. The aim is to provide some simple suggestions for the refurbishment of old dorms and the design of new ones by looking at the limitations and possibilities of sharing space of this type.
According to the results of this study, important predictors of successful shared spaces include location and number of users of shared facilities, length of shared corridors and number of attached rooms, type of vertical and horizontal access, furniture and storage spaces and the room layout regarding personal space and territory definitions.
Background
Student housing, including purpose-built dormitories, has been researched by architects and behavioural scientists because of the...