PavoneCLUEdraft

Lauren Pavone Foundations of Writing-Dr. Sherry 9/30/13

** Doubled vs. Tripled **
 * Problem **

Coming to college is a big step in life for teenagers and besides getting used to the classes and the work they also have to get used to living with another person or two other people. For many college freshmen it is their first time living with someone else and having to share a room and a bathroom. Why are more students being tripled? and Are there more problems with how the students are handling being tripled? To answer these questions I used the articles //Tripling in the Dorms// by Brian Mullen and //Effects of Tripled College Students// by Elizabeth A. Clark. Besides using the articles I will use the data I collected interviewing college freshmen on either living in doubled or tripled rooms.

In both articles I found they both mentioned the effects of tripling and how it affects the students. They also mentioned why there is an increase in tripling and how students are reacting mentally and physically to sharing space with two people (1). They also both agreed on the types of students that should be tripled. In //Tripling in the Dorms//, Mullen found out that there is an increase in admissions, which lead to an increase in tripled dorm rooms. The data from Mullen’s article goes along with the information that Clark found in //Effects of a Tripled College Student// since she found that more students want on campus housing rather than off campus which is leading to an increase in tripled dorm rooms (2). Since more students are being accepted to colleges and more are demanding on campus housing the colleges and universities need to make room for these incoming students (3).
 * Background **

Both articles agreed that females are better off being tripled than males. Males do not like being in close spaces with other males. They both agreed that males are more homophobic and prefer to only be in a room with one other male. They both agreed that females are better off being tripled even though colleges have no control over the amount of how much of each gender gets tripled. No matter what gender though in //Effects of Tripled College Students//, Clark found that more students who are tripled are unhappier and more stressed than doubled students.

To compare the data from the articles to freshmen at Bloomsburg, I interviewed students who were both doubled and tripled and both males and females (1). All of the freshmen that I interviewed agreed that it is better to be doubled because there would be more space than being in a tripled room. Both male and female who are tripled said they have one roommate who is inconsiderate and rude (2). Since both agreed, you could conclude that they would possibly detriple if they had the option (3). They also both agreed that an advantage is that they know two more people that they could be friends with in the beginning of the year. They agreed that a disadvantage was that there was less space and their roommate is rude. Also with the findings in the articles that males prefer to not be tripled, I asked the male I interviewed said he doesn’t like being in a room with two other guys.
 * Findings **

Based on the articles, I found that colleges are admitting more students which is forcing students to become tripled unless they would rather want off campus housing although from the articles students are wanting on campus housing. From both articles it showed that females prefer being tripled rather than males. Being tripled could have benefits but it tends to cause unhappiness in the room and stress among the residents. The information from the articles compares with the information I collected from interviewing residents that were doubled and tripled. Being in a tripled room there is less space for each resident to call their own and the rooms are crowded. Also being in a tripled there is more tension in the room since there is most likely one roommate who is inconsiderate.
 * Conclusion **

Mullen, Brian, and Virginia Felleman. "Tripling In The Dorms: A Meta-Analytic Integration." Basic & Applied Social Psychology 11.1 (1990): 33-43. Business Source Premier. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.
 * Sources **

Vasti Torres, et al. "Residential Density: The Effects Of Tripling College Students." Journal Of College Student Development 53.3 (2012): 477. Publisher Provided Full Text Searching File. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.