Movement toward the Familiar

A study is reported of the direction of people's escape from a fire in a large-scale room containing an entrance and emergency fire exit in opposite corners. The affiliative model tested predicts that in a situation of potential entrapment people would move toward familiar persons and places. This model of behavior is contrasted with physical science and complementary panic concepts underlying escape route design. These assume a deterministic relationship between the physical availability and proximity of an emergency exit and its subsequent use. Although proximity to an exit was important, support was also found for the affiliative model in the statistical interrelationships found. In general, staff left by the fire exit whereas individual members of the public separated from other group members located themselves toward the entrance end and left that way. Choice of location and exit used were mediated by person and place affiliations. Future research should examine the degree to which people's direction of movement is influenced by affiliative ties in a variety of fires. Place affiliation, it is argued, is not addressed sufficiently in escape route design.