{{Short description|Type of shared lounge, often in dorms}} {{About|the recreational space|student organizational bodies in universities|Common room (university)}} [[File:Moseley_Hall_lounge.jpg|thumb|A dual purpose common room and informal meeting space in Moseley Hall at Bowling Green State University.]]
A '''common room''' or '''student lounge''' is a type of shared lounge, most often found in halls of residence or dormitories, at universities, colleges,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://scr.chch.ox.ac.uk/ | title=Senior Common Room | publisher=Christ Church, University of Oxford, UK | access-date=2 June 2011 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606070034/http://scr.chch.ox.ac.uk/ | archive-date=6 June 2011 }}</ref> and sometimes military bases, hospitals, rest homes, hostels, and minimum-security prisons.<ref name="book">{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Park|last2=Craig|first2=Susannah|title=The Complete Idiot's Guide to Running a Bed and Breakfast|date=2001|publisher=Penguin|pages=229–230|isbn=9780028640006|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yIgWt_Lrrs8C&q=what+should+a+common+room+feature&pg=PA229|access-date=2 December 2016}}</ref> They are often found in secondary schools and sixth form colleges, where they are designed to give students a space for relaxation and study.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pinnacle-furniture.co.uk/blog/a-guide-to-sixth-form-furniture/|title=A Guide to Sixth Form Furniture|publisher=Pinnacle Furniture|access-date=2 December 2016|archive-date=16 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316194519/https://pinnacle-furniture.co.uk/blog/a-guide-to-sixth-form-furniture/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Regular features include couches, televisions, coffee tables, and other generic lounge furniture for socializing.<ref name="book" /> Depending on its location and purpose of use, a common room may be known by another name. For instance, in mental hospitals, where access is usually restricted to the daytime hours, this type of room is often called a "day room".<ref name="book" /> In Singapore, the term usually refers to a bedroom without attached bathroom in an HDB apartment unit.<ref>{{cite web |title=Definitions of Common Room |url=https://www.propertyguru.com.sg/property-investment-questions/what-is-indicated-by-a-common-room-actually-is-this-a-room-you-share-with-others-like-a-student-dorm-135872 |access-date=31 January 2025 |website=Property Guru}}</ref> [[File:Bulacan_State_University_Student_Lounge8.jpg|thumb|Bulacan State University student lounge construction in 2024]] A 2003 study on the success of female physics majors found that the existence of a well-maintained student lounge was a marker of high success rates.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Whitten |first1=Barbara L. |author1-link=Barbara Whitten |last2=Foster |first2=Suzanne R. |last3=Duncombe |first3=Margaret L. |year=2003 |title=What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics? |url=http://tron.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/upload/Whitten_Barbara_APS_Gender_Equity_Conference.pdf |journal=Physics Today |volume=56 |issue=9 |pages=46 |bibcode=2003PhT....56i..46W |doi=10.1063/1.1620834 |quote="an important marker of a healthy department culture" |doi-access=free |accessdate=2008-06-12}}</ref> Several studies conducted regarding gossip patterns have chosen the student lounge as an excellent choice for an unregulated environment.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Howard |first=W |author2=WD Crano |year=1974 |title=Effects of Sex, Conversation, Location, and Size of Observer Group on Bystander Intervention in a High Risk Situation |journal=Sociometry |volume=37 |issue=4 |pages=491–507 |doi=10.2307/2786423 |jstor=2786423}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Levin |first=J |author2=A Arluke |date=February 1985 |title=An exploratory analysis of sex differences in gossip |journal=Sex Roles |volume=12 |issue=3–4 |pages=281 |doi=10.1007/BF00287594 |s2cid=143795978}}</ref><ref>CAMPBELL LEAPERAND, HEITHRE HOLLIDAY (1995) Gossip in same-gender and cross-gender friends' conversations Personal Relationships 2 (3), 237–246.</ref> It has been noted that distance-learning courses should strive to provide a similar environment for casual conversation.<ref>{{cite web |last=Carlson |first=Randal |author2=Judi Repman |year=2000 |title=Chalk Dust from the Virtual Classroom |url=http://www.aace.org/pubs/WebNet/v2no3/23ChalkDust.pdf |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070714102237/https://www.aace.org/pubs/webnet/v2no3/23ChalkDust.pdf |archivedate=July 14, 2007 |accessdate=2008-06-12 |publisher=Webnet Journal}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Yoder |first=MB |year=2003 |title=Seven Steps to Successful Online Learning Communities |journal=Learning & Leading with Technology}}</ref> The University of Texas held a contest to design its student lounges.<ref name="ctest">[http://soa.utexas.edu/competition/lounge Design your student lounge], UTSOA, access date June 10, 2008</ref> The design of some student lounges have even won awards for the architects for their creations.<ref name="won">[http://www.tcaup.umich.edu/arch/updates/2008/05/student-designs-among-aia-award-winners.html Robinson’s Design for MUP/MUD Student Lounge Among AIA Award Winners], TCAUP, access date June 10, 2008</ref>
== Gallery == <gallery mode="packed" heights="180" caption="Common rooms around the world"> File:Common Room at I.I.T. Delhi.jpg|alt=Common Room at IIT Delhi|Common room from Karakoram Hostel, I.I.T. Delhi
File:Dialynas Hall common room.jpg|alt=Room in Dialynas Hall with sofas, a coffee table, a refrigerator, and plants. There is light streaming through two open windows, a warm earth-toned color palette, and an exposed concrete column.|Private common room in a residential suite at Pomona College in California<br/>{{panorama link|Dialynas Hall common room photosphere.jpg}} </gallery>
==See also== * Common area * Common room (university)
==References== {{reflist}}
== External links == *{{commons category inline|Common rooms}} *{{wti}} {{Room}}
Category:Rooms Category:Educational environment Category:School terminology
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