The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 2 - 70

Pressley R. Rankin, IV * Needham Yancey Gulley

DISCUSSION AND FINDINGS
Nippert-Eng's (1996a, 1996b) continuum of
segmentation and integration was utilized to
assist with understanding the findings of this
study, while also exploring the data for new understandings. Nippert-Eng characterized those
on one end of the continuum as integrators
(workers who set weak boundaries between
work and home). Integrators often let work life
flow into personal time and personal life flow
into work time. Those on the other end were
considered segmentors who, in contrast, try to
separate work and home by compartmentalizing tasks between the two settings.
The data from this study were interpreted
based on Nippert-Eng's (1996b) scale, and all
participants were classified as extreme integrators, an extremely rare classification. The
literature tells us that in most environments
there would be a greater distribution between
segmentors and integrators. The nature and
location of the work in residence life, however,
made the environment more integrative than
other work settings. Therefore, based on the
data from this study, the term integrative environment was created to describe this special
combination of living where you work in residence life.
When a person lives where they work, the
simple act of going through the front door
brings work front and center, whether or not
a person is supposed to be working. If a residence life professional's child or pet runs into
the hallway they, too, have crossed a threshold
into the workspace. Also, an important part
of work in residence life involves supervising
people who live in the same community. Thus,
students and staff-aspects of the work environment-can knock on the door at any time
70

of the day and/or walk by the window and look
into the professional's home domain should
the curtains be open. This physical and psychological breakdown of the personal/professional
dichotomy is a fundamental aspect of the integrative environment of residence life.
One consequence of living in an integrative
environment is experiencing a constant flow of
stressors that push against any home boundaries and, in the process, shrink or destroy them.
The work of creating and maintaining boundaries becomes that much harder to do. The
experience of working hard to maintain boundaries was true for the sample of residence life
professionals who participated in this study.
They all answered work emails, phone calls,
and text messages when at home. Additionally,
they all dealt with situations when work forced
its way into personal time no matter what they
had planned. Ultimately, all the participants
recognized that living where they work meant
that they were always on duty while in the
building outside their apartment.
Since the participants were extreme integrators living in an integrative environment, it
became clear during data analysis that to really
understand their experience required a more
focused understanding of integration. This
new way of thinking moved from NippertEng's (1996b) dichotomy of segmentor-integrator to a more nuanced understanding of
integrators, which led to the development of
a new model, with one end of the continuum
being full integrator and the other being integrative segmentor. Full integrators have few if any
boundaries between work and life, while integrative segmentors establish more boundaries
on how their work flows into their personal
lives, though often with little success.

T h e J o u r n a l o f C o l l e g e a n d U n i v e r s i t y St u d e n t H o u s i n g
The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 2

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