A Sociological Understanding of Community on University Campuses: An Evaluation of the Student Union as a Social Space

Abstract

This thesis will address: the creation of community on college campuses, which includes examining the role that space plays in the formation of community. According to prominent social theorists such as Henri Lefebvre and Pierre Bourdieu, space and its use are intricately connected to power and the construction of public spaces. Universities are such places and this research examines one of the central communal features of the American university, the student union.