Abstract:
Walailak University, which is situated in Thasala District, Nakhonsithammarat Province, Thailand, needs to arrange accommodations for its staff because its location is far from the central Muang District of the province. It was found that the current accommodations are in a decrepit state as they have been in use since 1998, and are insufficient for the increasing number of staff members. Therefore, the university formulated a policy to increase the number of accommodations as a benefit for the convenience of its academic staff. Information on behavior towards the utilization of rooms and common areas of the current dormitory would be of use to the university in order to decide on the best arrangement of future accommodations that correspond to the needs of actual utilization. Hence, this research aims 1) to collect general information on a sample of the universitys academic staff, 2) to investigate staff behavior towards utilizing the dormitory rooms and common areas, and 3) to identify problems with the utilization of the dormitory rooms and common areas. Based upon secondary data received from the university, it was found that the university had arranged dormitory rooms for unmarried staff and for staff with families with six areas: 1) preparation zones, 2) bathrooms, 3) areas for work and rest, 4) balconies, 5) dressing areas, and 6) bedrooms. Common areas outside of the dormitory include 1) streets leading to the dormitory, 2) soccer courts and basketball courts, 3) food stalls, and 4) parking areas and common areas inside of the building including a common court on the first floor at the center of the building, 2) bathrooms, and 3) multi-purpose areas on the first floor. The results from studying behavior towards utilizing the dormitory rooms showed that residents in rooms designed for unmarried university academic staff and those designated for families exhibited a similar utilization of the areas. Interviews revealed that, firstly, preparation areas were utilized as the university had intended them to be, which was to prepare and cook food. Secondly, the university had provided bathing and toilet areas and both these types of residents utilized the areas as intended. However, further behavior the placement of some washing machines and the drainage of water through bathrooms was also observed. Thirdly, the balconies served as clothes hanging areas as intended, as well as for cooking. Findings from investigating behavior towards utilizing the common areas outside of the building revealed that parking areas that the university had arranged were insufficient for the needs of its staff. Secondly, soccer courts and basketball courts were not used as they were in a decrepit state and had not been maintained. Thirdly, food court areas were mostly unused. As far as the common areas inside of the building were concerned, it was found that 1) common court areas and bathrooms were not utilized since they were dilapidated and had not been maintained and that 2) multi-purpose court areas were little used because of the small and inadequate number of waiting seats. The results suggest that there are no problems with the size of areas, yet there are concerns with amenities that the university should take into account. The problems cover 1) common areas for amenities such as food stalls, convenience stores, common cooking areas; 2) common areas for clothes washing, including those for drying laundry and placement of shared washing machines; and 3) insufficient and faraway parking areas, causing the residents to use a shortcut, rather than the main sidewalk that the university had provided, which the university should address by arranging parking areas as close as possible to the dormitory.