Journal of College & University Student Housing Volume 48, No. 1 - 40

College Student Definitions of Sense of Belonging
We posit that sense of belonging to a residential community-which can
be defined as the resident's journey shaped by active leadership and
inspired within a physical and experiential environment-results in
strong connections to people and place.
Environmental outcomes also included
safety, a concept that goes beyond physical
harm, locked doors, and identification card
access to include the notion of authenticity
of self. This feeling was remarked on by a
White female resident who had lived on campus
for one semester: " a safe, comfortable,
and inclusive community where I can be myself
and interact with people from a variety
of backgrounds. " Again, the environment
helped respondents connect their residential
community experience to other experiences
of belonging and mattering.
Lastly, an integrated environment was
also an outcome in student definitions. One
multiracial female respondent who had lived
on campus for one semester wrote, " I feel
that if I told anyone I lived in [my residential
community] they would immediately welcome
me and want to include me into conversation. "
This integration is considered an
environmental outcome because it seemed
to be expressed as universal ( " anyone " ). Another
respondent animated this outcome
when stating, " I would define [belonging] as
knowing that you are accepted, welcomed,
and included, part of the community. "
DISCUSSION
We aimed to understand sense of belonging
within the explicit context of and connection
to a collegiate residential community. The
three themes that emerged from student
responses support our implications for further
research and practice. We posit a student-proposed
definition of sense of belonging
to a collegiate residential community and
emphasize the importance of physical space
40 The Journal of College and University Student Housing
in the definition of a residential community
sense of belonging.
This study builds on past research by
offering a definition-grounded in student
responses-regarding sense of belonging to
a collegiate residential community. We posit
that sense of belonging to a residential community-which
can be defined as the resident's
journey shaped by active leadership
and inspired within a physical and experiential
environment-results in strong connections
to people and place. Our proposed
definition highlights the interplay of this
study's three themes of space and place (with
a call to campus housing staff and institutional
agents), strengthening connections,
and outcomes of belonging. In the proposed
definition, the concept of space and place is
described as the context for belonging, while
strengthening connections illustrates the upward
trajectory that occurs through regular
engagement with space-and-place variables.
This new definition is important for
practitioners and scholars alike as it offers
an operational definition for sense of belonging
to a residential community within the
collegiate context. There are similarities and
distinctions between our proposed definition
and those previously established in the field
of higher education. While not contradictory,
previous scholars' definitions referenced
in the literature review have varied in their
identification of the factors that contribute
to sense of belonging. Similarly, students
proposed definitions offering various components
that define belonging for them. Our
definition identifies belonging as a process,
not as a dichotomous variable where belong
Journal of College & University Student Housing Volume 48, No. 1

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