Personal Space Bubbles

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Personal Space Bubbles

• Dr Claire Lawrence
• School of Psychology

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Crowding and density

• Are crowding and high density the same thing?
• What are the effects of both?
• Why might this difference occur?
• The role of the (inter)personal space bubble

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Personal space

• Each of us have an area within which others may
  not come
• How do we measure this area?
• Does this area change depending upon who is
  invading and what the situation is?

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(I)PSB Some examples

• Example 1 ATM
• Sex of the individual is considered an important
  factor
• Opposite sexes keep longer distances between
  them.
• Females' approach to males was more distant than
  males approach to females.

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(I)PSB Some examples

• Example 2 Disability
• People allow less personal space to a confederate
  with a disability
• Gender did not have an effect
• Personality did not have effect

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(I)PSB Some examples

• Example 3 Cultural differences
• Italian and Greek dyads touch more than English,
  French, and Dutch dyads.
• Mixed dyads tended to maintain less direct
  orientations as they aged, male dyads maintained
  more direct orientations.

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Personal space and social rules

• Our PSB may change with different social and
  environmental settings
• This study examines the method of measuring PSB
  and compares a contexualised with a
  non-contextualised measurement.

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Main study

• Personal space bubble can be measured using the
  following pencil and paper procedure.
• The diagram represents a person (you) facing
  straight ahead in a square room.

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Measuring Personal Space
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Measuring Personal Space
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Measuring Personal Space
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Measuring Personal Space

• For four measurements, (N, S, E, W) place a mark
  where you would like a person who is approaching
  you to stop?
• This person is a stranger
• You remain facing forwards throughout

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Measuring Personal Space

• On the paper sheet mark with an x the point at
  which you would like a person approaching you to
  stop
• Imagine four possible directions of approach
  From the front, from behind, from the left and
  from the right

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Measuring Personal Space

• Now pick a partner and swap your sheet with
  theirs.
• Measure the distance from the edge of the
  representation of you, to the centre of the x
  in millimeters.

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For example
x
x
x
x
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Measuring Personal Space

• Complete the data sheet with the contextualised
  measurements from the whole group.
• Examine the differences between the two groups
  using SPSS