College students often are protected by strict campus safety protocol, however they are often finding themselves in dangerous security situations. In this blog entry I’ll detail some of the most common behavior amongst college students that leads to a compromise in security.
Most College Students don’t Know Self Defense
Many college students exist in a illusory bubble of Utopia housed inside their college campus. However they shouldn’t think it’s a utopia, as with any situation where you’re surrounded by total strangers, you need to be vigilant in protecting your own property. Not only are most college students ill prepared to defend themselves in the event of a violent burglary, but most of them don’t even anticipate the need for incorporating any additional self-maintained security infrastructure to protect their own property.
College Students are Distracted
From Facebook and Twitter, to Snapchat, Tinder, Tumblr, and Pokemon Go, college students are often distracted by a simultaneous host of electronic social platforms that all demand large contributions of labor and attention. Because of this, many college students walk around in a haze of blissful solipsism, and aren’t usually aware of the world around them, including any security risks that could show red flags in advance.
Heavy Drinking
It’s well known that there’s a culture of partying and drinking heavily embedded in many colleges. While this time certainly calls for a sense of youthful celebration and joviality, it’s common for inexperienced students to drink too much and lock themselves out of their dorms, lose their keys, or simply be unaware of leaving their doors unlocked. ,Excessive alcohol consumption inhibits focus, concentration, and awareness of surroundings, all factors that make it a fantastic foil for any sustained effort at on-campus security.
College Students are somewhat Solitary – even in social settings
We have moved long past the days of the buddy system where individuals appoint each other as guardians and watchdogs for each other’s interests and properties. Although quite a social cross section of society, college students nowadays manage much of their life completely on their own, without aid or assistance from adults – meaning that they might not have friends looking out for their security on a day-to-day level.