However, physical attributes are not so simple to measure in
a way that data may be obtained about them with confidence
(Francescato, 2002:27). This is why very few physical characteristics
have been examined in most studies of residential satisfaction.
An important physical characteristic, which is not often used in
evaluating satisfaction, is the morphological configuration.
2 This is
an important aspect of the design of buildings. However it is the
‘type of house’ which has usually been examined in satisfaction
studies. The ‘type of house’ refers to terraces, apartments, singlefamily
house or duplexes. The differences between these house
types are more or less functional rather than morphological. This
categorization is not useful in all contexts of housing and especially
in the context of students’ housing where functional differences do
not exist. Differences in the morphological characteristics of
buildings need to be captured for the purposes of evaluation.
Indeed, contrary to some studies (Day, 2000; Francescato et al.,
1979) which found that the type of site layout (site morphology)
and the type of housing (low rise/high rise and detached/attached)
were not predictors of satisfaction, there is enough evidence to
suggest that the morphological configuration of the residence
would significantly affect the level of satisfaction (Davis & Roizen,
1970; Gifford, 1997, p. 204; Hourihan, 1984). For example, Baum and
Valins (1977) and Baum and Davis (1980) have shown that the
length of the corridor of dormitories has a significant influence on
the perception of crowding