DESIGNING ERGONOMIC FOUR-CAPACITY DORMITORY ROOMS

Review of Literature

There have been several studies made about the design of dormitories. The designs have

considered factors that may influence a person’s work and behaviour. Each design has

similarities with one another but sometimes differs in the way of identifying, solving and

evaluating the problem areas. Professors, scientists and engineers have emphasized the need to

have a good working environment as it may affect the overall mood and performance of a

person.

In 1963, Matousek wrote about the significance of design. A designer’s role is important

because it will serve as the bridge connecting two different entities-the scientific knowledge and

the production side. He also enumerated the qualities required in a designer. The following are

the qualities and characteristics needed by a designer: capacity to visualize bodies, static forces

and stresses, dynamic phenomena, hydraulic forces, electrical and thermal phenomena;

integrating capacity; ability to think logically; ability to concentrate; ability to speak and write

skilfully; conscientiousness; sense of responsibility; integrity; perseverance; strength of will;

aesthetic sense; and temperament. A designer should always think about the economic factors

and ergonomic factors in any task. He mentioned that a good and high-level work can be

contributed to a good design and concluded that without a good designer; even the best salesmen

are rendered useless. Lastly, he said that designers can work in any field and can help improve

and develop efficient systems.

An example of a system that can be designed is a dormitory. A dormitory contains many

elements which makes it an ideal place to conduct a design study. There are different views

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about the design of a dormitory. Vredevoogd (2007) said that classrooms are not the only place

for learning but also in other environments such as a dormitory. Dormitory designs usually have

rooms with a space for studying. He mentioned that there are different things that determine the

design of a residence hall to make it conducive. Meanwhile, Wright (2006) believed that a

building that is well designed is a building that is more likely to attract people. A dormitory with

a more vibrant feeling can increase its likeability so students will tend to choose that dormitory.

She reported that designs have something to do with how a person will feel or act.

In 2006, Caine and Reynolds conducted a survey on college students across the United

States about attracting freshmen students to enrol in a university. According to the survey,

satisfactory dormitory facilities are a major reason for students to pursue their enrolment in that

university. Dormitory designs prove to be vital in luring students to continue with their

enrolment. It is therefore important for the university management to always maintain a good

dormitory environment.

Ergonomics is used to design a good working environment. This can be proven very

useful in dormitory room designs which generally have the same elements. The following are the

common things to be considered in designing a room: table, chair, bed and cabinet. Other more

complex elements involve: illumination level and door, window, floor and ceiling dimension.

Variations and differences are a nature of design. Therefore, this leads to the different analysis of

researchers on the design of rooms.

Saunders (ND) pointed out that most dormitory designs have a cramped environment. A

dormitory could have beautifully designed walls or floors and should definitely have an

environment that can maximize space. Careful analysis and planning are needed in order to have

this kind of room. Having maximum efficiency in a task is one of the founding principles of

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Ergonomics and this can be very useful in achieving a good room design. He said that an

ergonomically designed room can also help increasing focus and reducing fatigue. Good room

organization can help increase a person’s concentration and relaxation. The floor dimension is

measured and through this, appropriate storage spaces can be identified. He suggested that tall

and shallow storage bins can help utilize floor space and it can give an illusion of a larger room

area. He enumerated some common ergonomic design for rooms and this includes bed size, table

height, chair design, lighting requirements. The bed should be strategically placed against a wall

and near a window to have an access of natural light while reading or studying. Also, the bed

size should either be twin or twin XL to save more space. The table height or any work surface

should normally be waist-high and under these tables, small must-have things can be placed.

When designing a chair, it should accommodate or fit any male or female such that the elbows

can rest comfortably on the surface without hunching the shoulders. He added that illumination

level of the room is another thing to consider. Bad lighting can lead to headaches and stress. The

desk lamp to be used should be directly above the work surface. Full-spectrum fluorescent

lighting is also a good source of light in a dorm room. Aesthetics is also considered in the

designs. Colour is believed to have a psychological effect on people. Students tend to perform

better in academics when their surrounding is cool and calming. Blue painted walls are proven to

help students increase their efficiency in learning. Similar to this view of room design, Frost

(ND) wrote that the arrangement of furniture inside a room and the things brought from home

determine how much spacious the dorm room can be. There are furniture already placed in a

room so it is up to the student and his roommate to arrange the things according to their taste and

comfort. He provided some friendly reminders on how to keep a good room space. The furniture

should be pushed up against the wall to maximize and save space at the center of the room.

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Additionally, he reported that organizational tools such as shoe racks, hooks, shelving, pouches,

freestanding bookshelves, plastic bins and laundry bags can be used so that things cannot take so

much space.

The researches mentioned led to the studies of the evaluation of the effects of a good

working environment and the design of living arrangements of students. Anthes (2009)

mentioned that room designs can affect a person’s work and mood. Elevated and higher ceilings for

example, can make people feel more relaxed and can encourage people to think more freely. On

the other hand, low ceilings which have a confined feeling can make a more detailed and

statistical outlook. She believed that a room design that has a nice view of the surroundings such

as a garden or a forest can make people concentrate and focus better. In 2007, Joan Meyers-Levy

had similar findings. She conducted a survey and assigned 100 people to rooms with either an

eight- or 10-foot ceiling. She then asked separately the people from each group to classify sports

from a 10-item list into categories of their own choice. The people in the room with a 10-foot

ceiling came up with more abstract classifications such as challenging sports or sports they

would like to play. Those people in the room with an eight-foot ceiling answered more concrete

classifications such as the number of participants on a team.

Meanwhile, Auza (2010) wrote in his report that space and environment of a dormitory

room of a student, especially that of a freshman, could highly affect academic performance,

social integration and personal health. His study focused on identifying the difference of the

effects between double living and triples living arrangements, and analysing the importance of

sufficient space in dormitory rooms. He conducted a study on California Polytechnic State

University residential halls and found out that a triple living arrangement generally makes

students uncomfortable. The rooms had two bunk beds, three cabinets, tables and chairs. The

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students were confined in small spaces. He aimed to make an ergonomic checklist to help the

management and the students to have a good alternative room layout. He wanted a complete

redesign of furniture so that space could be maximized. In order to achieve his goals, he first

conducted a survey on the students living in the double and triple dormitory rooms. The survey

helped in identifying key factors and deeper details that affect students. Then he realized that the

only way to address the problems was to plan an ergonomic approach. This approach evaluated

what necessary changes and improvement in the design of rooms can be made.

The studies showed that it is essential to design a dormitory room based on the principles

of Ergonomics. There were no similar studies done in the Philippines about the ergonomic

design of four-capacity dormitories. Therefore, the proposed work can be proven useful in future

researches of ergonomic dormitories in the Philippines.

VII. LITERATURE CITED

1. Vredevoogd, J. (2007, February 9).Personal interview. Retrieved from

http://www.hermanmiller.com/research/research-summaries/room-and-board-redefined-

trends-in-residence-halls.html

2. Wright, J. (2006, October 20). Phone Interview. Retrieved from

http://www.hermanmiller.com/research/research-summaries/room-and-board-redefined-

trends-in-residence-halls.html

3. Saunders, J.(ND).Key Factors When Designing Your Dorm Room. Retrieved from

http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/key-factors-designing-dorm-room-12186.html

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4. Caine, D. and Reynolds, G. (2006, April). The Impact of Facilities on Recruitment and

Retention of Students. Retrieved from http://www.appa.org

5. Frost, S.(ND). How to Maximize Your Space in a College Dorm Room. Retrieved from

http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/maximize-space-college-dorm-room-6349.html\

6. Matousek R.(1963).Engineering Design A Systematic Approach. London: Blackie & Son

Limited.

7. Auza, R.(2010).Assessing Living Arrangements in Residence Halls. California Polytechnic State

University San Luis Obispo Campus, California.

8. Anthes, E.(2009, April 22).How Room Designs Affect Your Work and Mood [Web Log

Post]. Retrieved from http://blog.ounodesign.com/2009/05/02/how-rooms-and-

architecture-affect-mood-and-creativity/

9. Meyers-Levy J.(2007).Survey. http://blog.ounodesign.com/2009/05/02/how-rooms-and-

architecture-affect-mood-and-creativity/

10. Tetlow, K. (ND).Task Lighting Solutions: Their Economic and Ergonomic Benefits.

Retrieved from http://www.humanscale.com/userfiles/file/tasklightingsolutions.pdf

11. Heilweil, M. (1973, December). The Influence of Dormitory Architecture on Resident

Behavior.Retrieved from http://search.asee.org/search/fetch?url=file%3A%2F

%2Flocalhost%2FE%3A%2Fsearch%2Fconference%2F32%2FAC

%25202010Paper1719.pdf&index=conference_papers&space=129746797203605791716

676178&type=application%2Fpdf&charset

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