The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 1 - 73

Residence Hall Inhabitants' Responses to Fire Alarms

Discussion Questions
1. Most campuses conduct ﬁre alarm drills in on-campus residence halls. What is your
perspective on whether these training drills should be announced to students or be
conducted without any prior notice? What is your rationale?
2. The authors suggest that knowledge that ﬁres could become dangerous in under three
minutes could result in more students evacuating at the sound of an alarm. How would
you effectively market this type and amount of information about ﬁre safety to students
such that it had the desired effect?
3. The authors used compelling statistics to support the need to examine social inﬂuence
on student behaviors associated with residence hall ﬁres. One such statistic notes that
according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), there has been an 18%
increase in dormitory ﬁres from 1980 to 2011. What factors may have contributed to this
increase?
4. The authors note that peer pressure and pluralistic ignorance can have a profound impact
on whether or not students evacuate during a ﬁre alarm. Do you believe that there is a
problem with evacuation of residence halls on your campus? What can be done to improve
ﬁre safety in residence halls at your institution? How might technology be utilized to
encourage students to evacuate the residence halls when an alarm sounds?
5. The concept of social norming gained signiﬁcant traction through studies associated with
binge drinking on U.S. college campuses. Can you think of other student behaviors that
could be inﬂuenced by social norms? Discuss your thoughts on students' perceived sense of
immortality as related to safety issues in the residence halls?
6. Given the demonstrated impact of social cues, what role can residence hall staff play
during ﬁre drills and alarms that would contribute to a high evacuation rate? Review the
expectations of staff during ﬁre drills and alarms at your institution and assess whether the
role they play is in line with the results of this study.
7. The authors acknowledge that the study respondent group was homogeneous and did not
reﬂect diverse cultural backgrounds. What, if anything, should be done in communicating
differently with students from non-U.S. communities about ﬁre alarm systems?

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 1

Contents
The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 1 - Intro
The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 1 - Cover1
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