Little Boys are made of dirt and crumbs and everything messy

Little Boys are made of dirt and crumbs and everything messy: An Action Research Plan to Get Male Roommates to Clean

Because I do not have a classroom of my own yet (one day I will have the best one though) or a group of children I can work with, I am forced to be creative when picking my action research topic. Let me think about it…hmmm…I do have a group of children to work with. My roommates! Really, they are not children, but they are as messy as any toddler is. Let me fill you in. One of my roommates is my twin brother Jim, and he is a classic example of the modern day slob. His clothes sit on his bedroom floor and create a small sized memorial to Stone Mountain, and if my mom does his laundry and he does not feel like putting it away, he will put it back in the dirty clothes pile! Let me give you a funny example of the first day we moved in. He dumped all 10 pairs of his shoes on the kitchen floor near the door thinking he could use the wall as his shoe rack. I told him to drag them upstairs. He did, but he did not bother to sweep the floor after his shoes deposited leaf debris, dirt, and other particles found on boy’s shoes on the floor. After two days I broke down and swept the floor. Roy (24/Jounior at Georgia Tech) is my other roommate. He is one of my brother’s fraternity brothers. So far Roy shows no signs of being a slob, but he does not lift a finger. We have been in the house for a month, and I have taken out the trash, vacuumed, wiped off the counters, swept the floor…the list goes on. I have to give them credit for working an hour in the yard this weekend though, but I was out there too…pulling weeds.

So, needless to say from this introduction, something has to be done! Here is the deal. The house is within my control because if my efforts do not work my mom will step in. She and my dad own the house. She has already volunteered to step in, but I asked her to let me try first. My ultimate goal is to get the boys to help me clean the inside of the house. Somehow we are going to have to figure out what will work best. We may need a schedule that gives each person their own week to do all of the chores or we might need to assign an even amount of chores for each person to do each week.

My goal is to have a working cleaning plan in place by the end of this project (8 weeks!) so I can stop feeling like a maid and stop feeling frustrated with the lack of help in the house. Somehow we are going to have to figure out what will work best. I feel strongly about this because living in a nasty house is just gross. I hope that this action research paper can help all of those college roommates out there in their quest to stay clean while living with boys! I feel this topic is important because we all will live with someone at sometime, and from this research, I just might make that new roommate a little easier to work with. Hopefully my failures and successes through my different plans can help the next person with some good ideas.

For the most part, the following books were found at the Gwinnett County library. They have to do with changing behaviors, strategies for getting people to work with you, and making things happen in your life. Each book has specific chapters that relate to the topic at hand, and the books cover other topics in behavior modification. I have also included three web sites that can be explored. Lastly, two action research books are included if you would like to find out more about how to do action research. All of the descriptions that follow the book annotations are from www.amazon.com.

Branden, Nathaniel (1996). Taking responsibility: Self-reliance and the accountable life. New

The best-selling author of The Psychology of self-esteem presents an illuminating guide to self-realization through self-reliance and a vision of a society transformed by a new ethical individualism.

Reviewer: Elliot Lapan, Ph.D.
The author embraces free will as the dominant element in human character. He slights nature in the "nature-nurture" debate that continues to move from absolute nurture toward nature as each new genetically linked "behavior" is discovered.

Chernofsky, B. and Gage, D. (1996). Change your child’s behavior by changing yours. New York,

This book offers solutions based upon two premises: you must change your behavior before your child can change his; you must accept that most socially inappropriate behavior in children is developmentally appropriate. The authors explore 13 common problem situations with youngsters from birth to age six and provide the words and tools to deal with them. Each chapter re-creates and proffers solace for such practical scenarios as sibling rivalry, following instructions, whining, bedtime, going places, and the dreaded dinner table. The authors' no-nonsense approach machine-guns through each behavior by summarizing the situation, discussing what is happening developmentally, giving a typical parental reaction, relating the action to adult conduct, and concluding with books useful for bibliotherapy. If all goes as planned, children will become respectful, responsible individuals who know that your love for them does not change even if they make mistakes. This practical, affectionate technique sure beats a trip to the woodshed.

Barbara answers the question: “I would really appreciate some strategies on getting my six-year-old daughter to clean up after herself. I'm tired of nagging, counting and/or losing it. She is wonderfully responsible in most parts of her life, but I think she knows we are stumped on this one!” One of Barbara’s suggestions is: “One of the things that worked for our family was to have "pickup time" immediately after dinner.” There is an entire article of information on how to get your child to clean up.

“Cleaning is not at the top of any of our lists, especially kids. We wondered how other mothers got their kids to clean up messes and help with chores. Amazingly we found that a lot of mothers had their kids enjoying clean up time! So we asked the members of Delphi's Mommy Forum, "What do you do to make chore time a fun time for your kids?" Then the website goes on to give the best tips and hints.

Negotiating can be a scary prospect -- yet it plays an essential role in everyone's life. From making your case for the raise you deserve to getting the car you want at a price you can afford, from getting your kids to clean their rooms to persuading your spouse to do the dishes, skillful negotiation can bring you professional success and personal happiness. Now, becoming an effective negotiator is easier than ever. In Negotiating For Dummies, renowned negotiation experts Michael C. Donaldson and Mimi Donaldson share their proven strategies for achieving mutually acceptable solutions, without sacrificing the things you really want. Even if you're not a peace-brokering diplomat for the UN, with Negotiating For Dummies, you can quickly discover the techniques professional negotiators use -- from practicing and preparing to setting goals and limits up front to understanding and using body language to becoming a better listener.

Mills, Geoffrey (2000). Action Research: A guide for the teacher researcher. Columbus, OH:

Merrill.
From the Back Cover
An outstanding step-by-step guide and companion website that will guide beginning and experienced action researchers. Includes a chapter on online action research resources including all key web addresses and screen captures. Provides a comprehensive coverage of qualitative data collection techniques applied to teacher research. Includes chapter vignettes and a chapter-length case study to illustrate the action research process. Includes chapter question,“For Further Thought” to engage student sin conversations about action research issues. For Preservice and in-service teachers, teachers working on an advanced degree, and state-level licensing groups.

Peters, Ruth (1998). A common-sense approach to raising responsible kids! New York, NY: St.

Children respond beautifully to guidelines and limit-setting. This book will teach you practical, easy to institute rules and parenting practices that ensure your child's good behavior. It's a lot more fun raising a cooperative kid rather than an ornery, stubborn one, and the suggestions found in this book make parenting a joy!

Prochaska, J., Norcross, J., and Diclemente, C. (1994). Changing for good: The revolutionary

program that explains the six stages of change and teaches you how to free yourself from

To uncover the secret to successful personal change, three acclaimed psychologists studied more than 1000 people who were able to positively and permanently alter their lives without psychotherapy. They discovered that change does not depend on luck or willpower. It is a process that can be successfully managed by anyone who understands how it works. Once you determine which stage of change you're in, you can: create a climate where positive, change can occur, maintain motivation, turn setbacks into progress, and make your new beneficial habits a permanent part of your life. This groundbreaking book offers simple self-assessments, informative case histories, and concrete examples to help clarify each stage and process. Whether your goal is to start saving money, to stop drinking, or to end other self-defeating or addictive behaviors, this revolutionary program will help you implement positive personal change . . . for life.

Schmuck, Richard (1997). Practical action research for change. Arlington Heights, IL: SkyLight

Practical Action Research for Change simplifies action research for teachers and administrators. Reflective practice and action research can work together to serve as a source for developing professionalism, team problem solving skills, and democratic relationships in your school community. For your convenience, Richard Schmuck works step-by-step through both kinds of action research - proactive and responsive - and gives several examples of teachers carrying out each. Schmuck takes his discussion even further by explaining how a teacher can incorporate other teachers, schools, and districts in action research. Practical tips for collecting data, for individual and group reflection, and for effectively implementing your action research are included also.

Seligman, Martin (1993). What you can change and what you can’t. New York, NY: Alfred A.

Two worlds views are in collision," Seligman says, over the prospects of behavioral change. Those products of the Western concept of free will--psychotherapy and self-improvement--maintain that behavior is malleable through a variety of conscious techniques. Biological psychiatry asserts that mental illness is physically caused, personality is genetically fixed, and brain chemistry determines emotions; change is possible only by physical interventions, primarily pharmaceutical but also surgical. Seligman comes down between those two extremes in recommending what to do about anxiety, phobias, depression, sexual problems, weight, alcohol use, etc. He advocates techniques that have demonstrably achieved lasting change or--what is far more likely--reduction in the frequency of undesired behavior. He bases his advice in sound research and highly educated inference, which means that his book constantly rewards anyone interested in individual psychology.

I am using action research methodology to investigate ways to get my roommates to help clean the house. I have several focus questions to help guide my research:

(1) How many different strategies do I need to formulate to create a fair research environment?

(3) If I implement something and it works, how long do you think it would take before the boys slacked off again?

I am the instrument being used to collect the data. I have a lot of experience doing research projects and papers during my years as an undergraduate college student. In college we were required to look at current data in books, articles, and off of the Internet. We were also required to keep track of results when we attempted a new teaching strategy in our student teaching classroom. Drawing from these two experiences helps me to be a better observer, researcher, and writer. Also, during those years, I lived with three different sets of roommates where we practiced different methods for cleaning the house. A lot of the success of your cleaning strategies depends on how clean the members of the house are, and I am fortunate to have had mostly clean roommates. I was the one who created the schedules for cleaning; so, I have experience in creating and implementing cleaning routines.

I came into this living experience knowing my brother is pretty messy, but my mom kept us on a tight leash at home concerning chores. Each of us had set chores we had to do each Saturday; so, I felt like I could get some cooperation from him. I did not know Roy at all; so, I did not know what to expect from him. Jim said he was the ideal roommate though. That comment lead me to believe he was clean. I should have accounted for my idea of clean and Jim’s lack of regard of cleanliness as a qualification for a good roommate. For me, the house needs to be cleaned well once a week. The counters and stove need to be washed off, the floor needs to be vacuumed, the glass needs to be cleaned, laundry needs to be washed…things of that nature. During the week the kitchen floor needs to be swept, trash needs to be taken out, and dishes need to be done.

This is a pretty simple section. I chose Jim and Roy because they are my only roommates. Both of the boys go to Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Jim is 22 and a senior. Roy is 24 and a junior. Jim was raised here in Georgia with a very clean mom who expected him to do chores each weekend. Roy was raised in Korea (I don’t know if his mom is clean or not) with the mentality that women are subservient and should take care of the home. He, more than likely, did not lift a finger. The only thing I expect to learn from the two boys is a way to get them involved in cleaning.

1. Create a schedule that gives each person their own week to do all of the chores

I am going to try a couple of approaches in this cycle. They will be very basic approaches just to see what I am up against (daily observations of this cycle can be found in the appendix). Jim volunteered to do the trash each week because we were trying to throw away all of the trash the previous tenants left. Before I started my research, Jim took the trash up pretty well because school had not started, but when it did he became absent minded about his commitment. First, I tried writing a note to remind Jim to take out the trash on the message board, and I called him the morning it was to be taken out (the call is what ended up working to remind him). This strategy worked very well because the trash and recycling was taken out. So, the next week I just asked if he wanted help taking the trash to the top of the driveway, and he said no. So, I just put a sticky note on the message board and did not call. This resulted in another successful week. The next week I did not say anything about the trash and recycling. I ended up taking it up to the curb because Jim forgot. This just proves Jim needs to be reminded in order for the trash and recycling to make it to the curb. I asked Jim why he could not remember that the trash and recycling went up on Tuesday night. He said it was not important enough for him to remember. I wonder why. Does he want trash piling up in the house?

My next action was to try peer pressure/guilt. Every Saturday morning Jim and Roy are watching TV when I clean. So, my thought was they would see me cleaning and think they should help too. The sight of me cleaning does not motivate them to help for some reason though. Week after week they sit and I clean. Roy will move the coffee table when I am vacuuming though. It was then time to move on to guilt. I fussed at Jim one-week night about their lack of help, and Jim said they would contribute the coming up weekend. I went home to my parents, and when I got back, Roy had cleaned the bathroom and Jim had vacuumed and swept. But by the next weekend they were back to their old tactics of doing nothing.

My last tactic in this cycle was to do nothing for a week to see if they would wallow in the filth or clean it up. Take a good guess at what they did. That’s right…NOTHING! The lack of my efforts did not bother them. I asked them what was up with that, and Jim said it was not that bad…it could be worse. I do not want to see it worse! So, the next weekend I just could not stand the condition of our house anymore. I vacuumed my room, the living room, the hall/stairs, the bathroom (which had not been vacuumed since we moved in), and our “office” room. I vacuumed flies off the windowsill and crickets out of the corners! I also swept the kitchen floor. While in the kitchen, I put all the plates, bowls, cups, and silverware in the dishwasher. I left the skillets and two pots and the cutting board joined the pile. I then cleaned the counters and stove top. Food had been spilled and left and crumbs were all over the counter. Neither one of them wipe-up after themselves! The kitchen table was in the same condition.

The first cycle run was to see if simple efforts could enact a change. Obviously they did not work because I got spurattic support; so, it is time to try to solve the problem with some action research methods. First I interviewed Jim and Roy independently (independent interview questions can be found in the appendix). I thought that by my interviewing them separately first, I could get their own opinions-not ones that they could contrive in a group interview. I asked both boys how they felt about cleaning. Jim made a big joke about how I made him clean the womb we were in as embryos; so, since birth, he’s had “a bad feeling about cleaning.” So I asked him to answer more honestly, and he said cleaning was not on the top of his importance list so he frequently overlooked it. Roy said he did not mind cleaning if it was not too often. Jim sometimes cares if he lives in a clean house, and Roy said “not really” to the question does it matter if you live in a clean house. Jim thinks the house should be cleaned every two weeks, and Roy says every three months. When I asked the boys what their idea of dirty is, Roy said roaches, and Jim said it was a general discomfort with something present. They are just a vast cornucopia of help. From these sarcastic responses, I decided they pretty much have no motivation to clean.

Next, I created two surveys based on the private interviews and moving a step beyond what we already established. The first survey (survey I can be found in the appendix) I gave them was about how they felt about nine different action strategies. They had to rank each one according to its effectiveness. Just to give you an idea about its results-Jim said that creating a schedule and doing nothing to see how bad it gets were two great ideas. Roy thinks a house meeting and sticky notes reminding everyone of their chores would be two great ideas for solving our problem. Both boys thought that having to pay more in rent for me to do the cleaning was a poor idea.

After I received the first survey back, I gave them the second survey (survey II can be found in the appendix). This survey really expanded on our private interviews. For example, asking the boys how often the house should be cleaned is too big a topic; so, I broke it down into specific chores. This worked better because Roy did not continue to give me the ‘clean the house every three months’ answer. The second survey was based on this principle. I listed every chore and asked the boys to say how often it should be done. I also asked them what chores they would like to do, and what day would be the best day for them to do the chores. For the chores that I thought should be done every week, Roy thought they should be done every two weeks (things like vacuuming, sweeping, and wiping off the counters with Lysol). Jim agreed with me and said those chores should be done once a week. Jim says the floors should never be mopped, and Roy thinks it should be done twice a month. There is some light at the end of this tunnel though. Jim thinks the dishes should be done every night (Roy every three nights). For the most part, the boys checked a lot of the chores that I listed as ones they would not mind doing. Neither one of the boys wants to mop though. Sunday also turned out to be a day both boys agreed upon that would be the best chore doing day.

With the private interview results and the survey answers, I decided it was time for a group interview combining all of the data to reach an agreed upon solution (group interview questions in appendix). Roy and Jim felt a house meeting would be a great way to come up with a solution; so; I called a meeting Sunday night (November 12, 2000) at 8 p.m. I decided to write down what they said. I told them I was tired of cleaning the house by myself. I also said that we all lived in the house, and it was everyone’s responsibility to help. I then looked at Jim and said scatter brainedness does not count as an excuse for not helping…neither does a lack of desire. I said this to avoid rehashing the first interview because from their responses earlier, I knew they did not want to help; so, I wanted to avoid that topic all together and just focus on a solution. First I asked them what method of assigning chores would work best. Roy did not know, and Jim said a list and a time frame would work best. I went with Jim’s idea and suggested that we create a schedule and divide up the chores because from survey I, they both thought a schedule would be at least a fair idea. So, we worked with the results from survey II and decided who should do what chores.

Jenna Jim Roy

(A) Vacuum House (B) Blow Off Driveway (C) Mop-Kitchen&Bathrooms

(A) Clean Counters/Glass (C) Clean Bathrooms (D) Empty Garbage/(A) Take Garbage and

Recycling to the Curb

(A) Sweep Kitchen

We pretty much ranked the chores by time and occurrence and divided them up. I took all the weekly chores-sweeping, vacuuming, cleaning the glass and counters. I feel better about that because the house will be clean, and the boys took all the tri-weekly chores, which are more time consuming-mopping, blowing off the driveway, and cleaning the bathrooms. They said they like the idea of not having to work every weekend. Roy is responsible for taking the trash and recycling out and up every week though (he is the only one who does not mind that chore). We also decided the boys could do their chores on Sunday, and I could do mine on Saturday because that is my best day. (Please see the calendar we decided on in the appendix-this will act as a reminder. I will probably verbally remind them when their weekend of chores is coming up too). The dishes were decided to be an independent chore-each one of us has to do our own by the end of each night. Emptying the dishwasher has not posed a problem either; so, we planned to leave it to who ever was available. I wonder if assigning chores will stop people from emptying the dishwasher because I have never had to ask for that to be done…I think they empty it because we run out of cups. We will see if it stops getting emptied though. If it does, I’ll have to assign it to someone.

The next topic to cover was responsibility for your work. I asked Jim and Roy if they could remember to do their part. Jim said no, and Roy said yes. I figured Jim would say no; so, I asked him if sticky note reminders or writing on the message board would help, and he said yes. Lastly, I asked if there should be a penalty for not doing your chores. Jim said there should be no penalty to begin with, and that enforcing a penalty in most cases would be more trouble then it’s worth. Roy said I should assign extra chores for not doing your part. I guess we can worry more about this after some more observations.

So, right now I have been observing again. The calendar started with them doing their chores because they have not been done in a long time. We will see in two to three weeks if they do their scheduled chores again. I know I am doing mine every week.

I used many types of data collection techniques. At first (and towards the end), I used observation. I kept a detailed timeline of everything that went on cleaning wise in the house (Please see a partial listing of my action research time line in the appendix). While conducting my observations, I observed the inside of my home (Please see a map of the house in the appendix) and the boys. While I did my observations, I did not expect to find the boys giving me a lot of help; so, I took pictures as evidence of the lack of cleaning (Please see pictures in the appendix). My next method of data collection was interviewing. I interviewed both boys individually so they could share answers/ideas (Please see independent interview questions in the appendix). After their interviews, I created two surveys to cover what we talked about in the interview and get more detail (please see blank surveys and the boys filled out surveys in the appendix). Survey I includes a small example of a semantic differential scale. After the surveys, I conducted a group interview where we used the surveys to conduct document analysis to create a chore list (see cycle two above) and create a chore calendar (Please see a copy of the calendar and group interview questions in the appendix). As far as analyzing the data, I just read what I wrote and what the boys said and wrote and create appropriate solutions.

You, the reader, can be assured of this papers credibility because I spent all of my allotted time observing and enacting strategies at the study site, I kept a detailed journal of my observations (there is an entry for almost everyday), I shared my action research progress two times with fellow teachers in a class setting where they gave me their input, and I collected several pieces of documentation to add to my data. You can also be assured of this papers transferability because of the thick description used to describe the cycles allows a person to repeat the same steps I have, and the map of the house and descriptions of the participants allows you, the reader, to identify the setting. Next, you can be assured of this papers dependability because I over lapped methods on several occasions to make sure I got the full story (For example, I verbally reminded Jim to take out the trash the night before, and I left a note on the message. Another example is, I interviewed the boys and then I gave them surveys to get a more complete picture), and I have left a wonderful audit trail for anyone to follow (thick description in the paper and an appendix full of evidence and documents). Lastly, you can be assured of this papers confirmability because I included an entire section about my biases and assumptions in the beginning of this paper.

I found that these two boys had no intention of cleaning the house. Jim at least cares if the house is clean (even if his definition of clean is not the same as mine); Roy, on several occasions, has voiced the opinion that cleaning should never be done. Even when he does a job, he does a minimal job. I also found that if someone would take the responsibility of assigning chores, they were more willing to help. Lastly I found that my brother has a short memory for things that are not a priority. That is why I think I am going to have to remind him often of his chores, which is ok because I am a little mother hen.

First, I tried writing a note to remind Jim to take out the trash on the message board, and I called him the morning it was to be taken out. This strategy worked very well because the trash and recycling was taken out. So, the next week I just asked if he wanted help taking the trash to the top of the driveway, and he said no. So, I just put a sticky note on the message board and did not call. This resulted in another successful week. The next week I did not say anything about the trash and recycling. I ended up taking it up to the curb because Jim forgot. This just proves Jim needs to be reminded in order for the trash and recycling to make it to the curb. My next action was to try peer pressure/guilt. Every Saturday morning Jim and Roy are watching TV when I clean. So, my thought was they would see me cleaning and think they should help too. The sight of me cleaning does not motivate them to help for some reason though. It was then time to move on to guilt. I fussed at Jim one-week night about their lack of help, and Jim said they would contribute the coming up weekend. I went home to my parents, and when I got back, Roy had cleaned the bathroom and Jim had vacuumed and swept. But by the next weekend they were back to their old tactics of doing nothing. My next tactic was to nothing for a week to see if they wallow in the filth or clean it up. Take a good guess at what they did. That’s right…NOTHING! The lack of my efforts did not bother them. The next weekend I just could not stand the condition of our house anymore so I cleaned. Next, I interviewed Jim and Roy independently. I thought that by my interviewing them separately first, I could get their own opinions-not ones that they could contrive in a group interview. Then, I created two surveys based on the private interviews and moving a step beyond what we already established. The first survey I gave them was about how they felt about nine different action strategies. They had to rank each one according to its effectiveness. They had no problem filling it out, and after I received them back, I gave them the second survey. This survey really expanded on our private interviews. For example, asking the boys how often the house should be cleaned was too big a topic; so, I broke it down into specific chores. This worked better because Roy did not continue to give me the ‘clean the house every three months’ answer. For the second survey, I listed every chore and asked the boys to say how often it should be done. I also asked them what chores they would like to do, and what day would be the best day for them to do the chores. With the private interview results and the survey answers, I decided it was time for a group interview combining all of the data to reach an agreed upon solution. I called a meeting Sunday night (November 12, 2000) at 8 p.m. First I asked them what method of assigning chores would work best. Roy did not know, and Jim said a list and a time frame would work best. I went with Jim’s idea and suggested that we create a schedule and divide up the chores because from survey I, they both thought a schedule would be at least a fair idea. So, we worked with the results from survey II and decided who should do what chores and how often and made a calendar of chores. This last strategy has been the best solution so far. This project is not done because I have not had an extended time to observe our calendar solution. I think it will continue to work though. If I continue to do “chore” reminding, I think this solution will be fulfilled.

This project is not finished. My next step is to keep observing our current situation to finish out cycle II because I have had a limited view of this strategies success. In a future cycle, if the calendar solution does not work, I will have to implement something else. For example, tacking on the cost of a mini-maid onto rent. Both boys think this is a bad solution, but I think it is the best one if I am doing all of the work. To do this, I would sit down with the boys, explain that things are not getting done, and then we would assign each chore a dollar value. I would then suggest they could split the cost in two. I would then keep a running tab and settle up with them at the end of each month. I do not want things to come down to this because I do not want to do all of the chores, but I rather do this than anything else because I am tired of nagging and pushing.

The results and strategies contained in this paper can be of help to other clean people who live with messy people because we all will live with someone at sometime, and from this research, I just might make that new roommate a little easier to work with. Hopefully my failures and successes through my different plans can help the next person with some good ideas and enable them to skip the guilt/nagging/do nothing step.

This has been a fun project. I would have never really explored the boy’s feelings on cleaning otherwise. It was interesting to learn more about Roy through our cleaning conversations. I would have never guessed he would be so apathetic to cleaning. I mean he just does not care and is not interested at all. He beats Jim in that department, which I think is amazing. I would also never have tried to make a solution we could all agree upon. I would have just told everyone what to do because I seem to be the only one who cares. I think that this project will help me when I start teaching because I can always refer back to my books to get another idea on how to research my classroom. As a teacher you observe everyday, but our books give a lot of examples on how to do research on your classroom beyond observations. This project also reminds me to take into account my own biases. This is a good reminder because you are not always going to have fair feelings about every situation; so, this aspect reminds you to talk to outside sources for their opinion and to self check your own judgments/prejudices.