Added to these differences is the usual situation in which the roommate is assigned rather than chosen and is unknown in terms of personality and life-style preferences. The majority of residential buildings on college campuses today were constructed in the late 50's and 60's. Because of the rapid increase of people returning to universities during this time, many institutions were prompted to construct large facilities quickly to accommodate these students. This arrangement is referred to as the traditional double-loaded corridor. The concept of ecological transition helps to understand this increasing level of frustration with university housing.
Several trends are clear.
One, students have their own bedrooms in their homes. Sharing a bedroom in the home has decreased from sixteen percent in 1950 to only four percent in 1990 according to the reports of the U.S. Census Bureau. It is a gathering of personal items into a personal space that is warm and safe. How safe, cozy, and personal are current residence halls. It seems that historically the balance was on the side of cost, not on the side of student need and comfort.