ABSTRACT
With increasing instances of gun violence on college campuses, it is timely to explore how the design of academic interior environments can support occupant safety. This exploratory study examines the interconnectivity between the “Run, Hide, Fight” (RHF) model, affordances within the built interior environment, and student perceptions of action possibilities in a hypothetical active shooter scenario. Students (n=19) at a suburban community college in the Eastern United States participated in behaviour mapping and autophotography exercises in the context of a semi-structured interview in one case study campus lecture building. Findings show that perceived affordances for RHF fell short of supporting participant assessments of what they needed to safely navigate the environment in an active shooting scenario. Pre-existing familiarity with the building had a strong influence on the development of safe evacuation plans (run). Hiding places did not support all body types (hide) and there were insufficient affordances within the classroom to defend against an intruder (fight). Implications for interior design and campus policy are discussed.
