Solitude and intimacy: Linking territoriality and privacy experiences

The further advancement of privacy models depends upon clarifying two issues: the relationship between privacy and territoriality and the degree to which different types of privacy have distinct behavioral and cognitive correlates. Two types of privacy experiences—solitude and intimacy—were investigated. Given the divergent function of these two forms of privacy, we expected each would be sought in different types of territories. We also expected that where people seek a form of privacy depends in part upon the quality of the immediate social environment: a territory will be used less for privacy experiences as the understandings that regulate usage of the space erode. Students were asked where they went for solitude, where they went for intimacy, and to describe their experiences in these two places. Results supported the hypotheses. In addition, a substantial and coequal linkage between privacy and territoriality appeared. A two-step process describing this linkage was suggested. Implications of the findings for a more precise conceptualization of privacy behaviors were explored.Portions of a prior version of this paper were presented at the annual meetings of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, 1978. This research was carried out while the first author was affiliated with Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Research funds were provided by a small grant award from the Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The authors are indebted to Ed Krupat and Eric Sundstrom for helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.