“I’m bored!”

Abstract

We examined small-college students’ complaints that their professors, classes, and so forth bore them. Comparing small-college students’ degree of existential meaning in life with previously obtained large-university students’ Purpose in Life Test scores yielded no difference except for students who felt that the small college campus does not have enough activities and that it is a uniquely dull place. Students with both negative views of a small campus had personality test scores that indicated they found life in general to be rather meaningless. It seems that small-college students’ feelings of boredom are probably no different from those of students at large campuses. What may be true is that if a student arrives at a campus without inherent motivation, he/she will see the prevailing environment in a purposeless manner. © 1987, The Psychonomic Society, Inc.. All rights reserved.