Student Behavior Case Study: Turlington Plaza

Going into this project my partner, Connor O’Brien, and I were both determined to observe students as they move through campus. After considering multiple possible locations, my partner and I decided that the best place on campus for our observations was Turlington Plaza. Turlington serves as a central hub for students as they make their way through campus, which makes it ideal for observing a wide range of personal behaviors and interactions. Due to the centrality of the plaza and the number of students who move through it, Turlington is also home to a wide array of people who are seeking to advertise their wares, from Gator Growl tickets to religious beliefs. These advertisers make use of the numerous brick tables that are arrayed around

The majority of students moved through the square with a steady, determined stride and with their heads down. Both of these traits send a very clear message to the other students and advertisers. They serve to isolate the students from each other and the advertisers who attempted to gain their attention. Another common tool used by the students to isolate themselves from the other people in the square was the extensive use of electrical devices, particularly smartphones. Students used their smartphones to send messages and to browse the web, but the impact this had was similar to that stated by Spradley in his observations of reading on the bus (Spradley, 9). The focus of the students on their phones prevented them from interacting with those around them. This set of behavior was most frequent in the students who seemed to be in a hurry to reach their destination. This makes sense given that there is a very limited amount of time available for students between

People demonstrating this set of mannerisms seemed to have come to the square largely for the interactions with the advertisers and other students. This group of students walked through the square sedately, stopping frequently to talk with the advertisers or friends they see moving through the square. In an attempt to better understand the interactions with the advertisers I employed a different technique of observation in which I actively approached the advertisers as a student of the second group of people. Much as Bohannon felt that taking part in the storytelling traditions in the town was a useful tool in examining how other cultures would view the story of Hamlet, I felt that the best way to understand the interactions of the students was to follow their lead and talk to the advertisers. It also allowed me to get close enough to hear the interactions of this group of students without sticking out from the crowd. In this way I found that the way these students interacted with the advertisers varied sharply. Some students, upon hearing what the advertisers were selling, acted disinterested and quickly moved away. On the other hand some students showed a clear interest in the products, particularly that of the less religious based advertisers. In this case the conversations were far longer and resulted in a happier looking student