The Science of Why You Cannot Lock In at Home

Do you ever find yourself unable to lock in at home?

Every Queen’s student has tried studying at home in Kingston and ended up doing nothing. You sit at your desk, open your laptop, and suddenly your brain decides the ideal time to reorganize your closet has arrived. It feels like a personal failure, but it is not. There is actual research explaining why home is one of the worst places to lock in.

Here is why your room in a Queen's residence or your house on Victoria Street is making you unfocused.

Your Room Has Built In Relaxation Cues

Your brain links spaces with past behaviour.

Psychology research shows your brain associates environments with specific habits. If your room at Victoria Hall, Watts, or your house near Brock Street is where you sleep, chill, scroll, or eat, your brain defaults to those behaviours.

A clear breakdown is in this video "How your environment impacts your outcomes in life" by Paul Gleeson:

Your bedroom is coded as a rest space. Stauffer is coded as a work space. Your brain follows those associations whether you want it to or not.

At Home, There Are Too Many Distractions

Quick distractions destroy momentum.

Research shows it takes over 20 minutes to refocus after a small interruption. In student housing, those interruptions are nonstop. Roommates walking in. People talking in the hallway. Noise from downstairs. Even the sound of someone microwaving at 2 pm can derail you.

Compare that to the Law Library or the silent area of Stauffer where distractions drop to zero.

You Lose the Social Pressure That Exists Everywhere On Campus

People working around you makes you work harder!

Queen’s students underestimate how much study spaces work because of the people in them. When you sit in Douglas and see twenty laptops open, your brain adjusts to match the environment. This is known as social facilitation.

Short explainer, “Social Facilitation Explained” by Practical Psychology:

Your bedroom has none of this baseline academic pressure. That is why focus drops as soon as you stay home.

Most Student Rooms Are Not Built for Study Endurance

Lighting, layout, and ergonomics matter.

Queen’s rentals and residence rooms are comfortable (sometimes...), but they are not optimized for cognitive performance. Poor lighting, uneven desks, soft chairs, and clutter all reduce sustained focus.

Simple explanation here “How room layout affects your mind” by Ana Marcu:

Campus spaces like Goodes, Mitchell Hall, Douglas, and Stauffer are physically designed for concentration, not comfort.

Switching Locations Helps Your Brain Enter Work Mode

I'm a firm believer that walking across campus acts as a mental reset.

Going from your house to Stauffer or Cogro creates a context switch. The walk itself cues your brain into work mode. Staying in one room all day blends rest and work together, which kills focus.

This is why even moving from floor 1 to floor 4 of Stauffer can reset your mindset!

Why This Matters Specifically at Queen’s

Queen’s culture is highly social and high movement. Campus has a natural rhythm. People always study somewhere. There are built in productivity hotspots. You feel it when you enter Goodes. You feel it on the fourth floor of Stauffer. You feel it at Cogro during exam season.

Your home environment cannot replicate that. It is not designed to.

Campus pushes you into work mode. Home pulls you out of it.

The Practical Playbook for Queen’s Students

Do not force your room to be a library. It is not supposed to be.

Use this approach instead:

1. Reserve your room for rest or light tasks

2. Do deep work at Stauffer, Douglas, Goodes, Mitchell, or JDUC

3. Keep heavy readings or writing for campus

4. Use home only when you need convenience or comfort

5. If home is your only option, switch one cue: move desks, change lighting, clear your table, or sit somewhere you do not normally relax

Your grades depend less on discipline and more on choosing the right environment!