As universities become increasingly more ethnically diverse, their campuses may change to support a multicultural student body. To prevent students from engaging only with students from their own country, campuses may include spaces that bring cultures together. These spaces must promote a sense of community while simultaneously, promoting safety, efficacy, comfort, self expression, and attachment for the individual. The robust body of literature on the academic, practical, social, and psychological obstacles faced by international students is adequately matched by the literature on the solutions universities have implemented thus far to help students overcome these obstacles (support programs, faculty training, multicultural events). However, intercultural connection and integration often occur on an interpersonal level, when domestic and international students engage in voluntary, pleasant, and casual contact in a built environment on a university campus. To understand how campus spaces may support interactions between domestic and international students, a three step research methodology was performed. The researcher conducted a survey, observation/behavioral mapping, and interviews. First, the survey identified each student participant's nationality, major, length of time at the university, preferred place on campus, and the activities they engaged in while there. Participants also assessed their preferences of the physical attributes of these places such as the place's proximity to other buildings, its overall appearance, ambient conditions, amenities, and its architectural features. Participants also assessed their perception of the place's behavioral attributes: safety, privacy, efficiency, and comfort. Next, the researcher engaged in observation and behavioral mapping of the top five places preferred by international students and the top five places preferred by domestic students. The researcher described the physical attributes in each place that support place attachment based on the literature, determined how the spaces were used, and the types of interactions that occurred there. Then, follow-up interviews with five international students and five domestic students were conducted. Interviewees explained in greater detail their preferences about their preferred place as well as their feelings of attachment, self-expression, and sense of community they experienced while in it. Lastly, interviewees answered questions regarding the circumstances of their interactions with students from other cultures. Survey and observation findings revealed student participants' preferences and perceptions of the physical and behavioral attributes of their chosen place. This data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and correlations to identify what preferences and perceptions were shared by both student groups. Next, interview findings revealed the students' experiences with students from other cultures as well as their recommendations for physical changes to the place and to the campus that might increase these interactions. The interviews were coded to reveal emergent themes. The conclusions from the survey, observations, and interviews evaluated the relationship between the built environment on an American university campus and multicultural engagement among students. This relationship may be used to inform the design of future campus places so that they support the needs of an increasingly diverse student body. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Interior Design in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts. / Spring Semester, 2014. / April 7, 2014. / Architecture, Campus, Culture, Design, Integration, University / Includes bibliographical references. / Lisa Waxman, Professor Directing Thesis; Jill Pable, Committee Member; Marlo Ransdell, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_185331 |
| Contributors | Trujillo, Lauren Sapiega (authoraut), Waxman, Lisa (professor directing thesis), Pable, Jill (committee member), Ransdell, Marlo (committee member), Department of Interior Design (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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