YOU. US. INDY.

MARCH 30-APRIL 2

CELEBRATING90 YEARS!

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That’s Dirty Talk! Reinventing Our Perceptions of Campus Blue-Collar Employees

ACPA ConferenceApril 1, 2014Jeremy Reed

Phd Student, University of Iowajeremy-reed@uiowa.edu

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Session Overview• Learning Objectives Overview- 1 minute• One Minute Free Write and Discussion- 5 minutes• Presenter Introduction/Background/Positionality- 5

minutes• Discussion of Presenter’s Custodial Dissertation

Study- 20 minutes• Large Group Discussion “How are blue-collar

workers treated on your campus?” -10 minutes• Wrap-up/Questions -5 minutes

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Session Learning OutcomesSession Participants will:

• Explore their personal perceptions of campus blue-collar workers.

• Gain a basic understanding of blue-collar identity theory.

• Discuss strategies for privileging the voice of campus blue-collar employees on their own campus.

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One Minute Free WriteWhat words come to mind when you think of

the blue-collar workers on your campus?

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Discuss in small groups.

Anyone care to share with the entire group?

Free Write Share

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Presenter Background & Positionality

• 16 years of student affairs work across admissions, career services, orientation, advising, and residence life functional areas

• First-Gen, blue-collar/working-class background• Work with maintenance/custodial staff on a

student paint crew as an undergrad• 11 months of dissertation research on campus

custodians• Philosophical Frame: Critical Theory: Master

Narratives & Counter Narratives

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Why study campus blue-collar workers?

Inclusivity

Student Success

Employee Motivation/Organizational Efficiency

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Critical Questions:

What do custodians think of college students?

What impact might interactions with students have on custodians’ work lives and occupational esteem?

Do interactions between students and custodians have implications for college student success?

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Absence of academic studies of campus custodians

Why? (Critical Theoretical Explanation??)

Okay, so what about related fields/literature????

Communication StudiesBlue-Collar Identity Theory

College Student Development/SuccessFaculty/Staff-Student Interactions & Mentoring

Literature

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Blue-Collar Identity Theory(Hughes, 1962; Ashforth & Kreiner, 1999)

Dirty Work: “Tasks and occupations that are likely to be perceived as disgusting or degrading” (Hughes, 1962).

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Blue-Collar Identity Theory(Hughes, 1962; Ashforth & Kreiner, 1999)

Types of stigma or taint:-Physical Taint: Jobs dealing with garbage, human waste, death. Janitors-Social Taint: Interactions with socially

stigmatized people. Prison guards-Moral Taint: Perceived as “sinful.” Pawn brokers, exotic dancers

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Blue-Collar Identity Theory(Hughes, 1962; Ashforth & Kreiner, 1999)

Dirty workers have surprisingly high occupational esteem.

Relationships with others provide an esteem-enhancing function.

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Relationships

Stigma“Dirty Work”

Blue-CollarIdentity

Characteristics

Relationships as a Counterbalance to Custodial Staff “Dirty Work” Stigma

Occupational Esteem

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Student-Faculty Interaction/Mentoring Studies

Interactions between students, faculty, and staff positively impact student success in college. (Kuh & Huh, 2001; Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005; Crisp & Cruz, 2009; Nora & Crisp, 2007; Campbell, Smith, Dugan & Komives, 2012)

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Student-Faculty Interaction/Mentoring Studies

There are important academic (Kuh & Ku, 2001) and emotional dimensions of student-faculty interactions (Schreinter, et al., 2011; Museus & Neville, 2012) and mentoring relationships.

Mentoring can be formal/informal, structured/unstructured, short-term/long-term, sanctioned/unsanctioned (Nora & Crisp, 2007).

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A Custodial Staff Dissertation Study

Primary Research Questions:

In what ways do three campus custodians interact with students during their work day at a large public university?

In what ways do those custodians talk about their interactions with students?

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Case Study Research Design

Three ParticipantsParticularity v.

Generalizability!!!!!Depth v. Breadth

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Participant Characteristics

Participant Inclusion Criteria • English-speaking custodians, employed full-time

in University Housing for at least 1 year• Willing to talk!

Recruitment Strategy• Referrals from Director of Housing

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Data Collection• Participant Observation

– 3-5 non-sequential work days per informant– Field journal as primary data collection tool

• “Guiding Questions” Semi-Structured Interview– Conduct 60-90 minute interview mid-way through

participant observation• Artifact Analysis

– Describe the nature of college student-related artifacts informants possess

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Data Analysis &Verification• Reflexive Writing

– Duel note-taking, memo writing, taking notes on my own notes

– What surprises, intrigues, and disturbs me about what I observe?

• Data Sorting & Coding– Themes from literature review– Blue-Collar Theory, Typology of Faculty-Student Interactions

• Member Checking– Clarifying questions occur throughout participant observation

• Disconfirming Examples• Data Saturation

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Data Collection-Participant Observation

-Interviews-Artifact Analysis

Data Analysis-Data Sorting-Data Coding

-Reflexive Writing-Member Checking

Data Verification

-Reflexive Writing-Member Checking

-Data Saturation-Disconfirming Examples

Research Methods

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Institutional Mission

Employee Assumed Duties

-Student Mentoring and Support Interactions

Campus Custodian

Institution Assigned Duties

-Cleaning and Maintenance

Indirect Support of

Direct Support ofInformally Performed

Formally Performed

Assigned and Assumed Duties of Custodians as Institutional Agents

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Institutional Mission

Employee Assumed Duties

-Student Mentoring and Support and Interactions

Campus Custodian

Institution Assigned Duties

-Cleaning and Maintenance

Indirect Support of

Direct Support of

Student Interactions

Social Stigma

Informally Performed

Formally Performed

Potential Influence of Assigned and Assumed Duties of Custodians as Institutional Agents

Positive Esteem

Negative Esteem

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Recap

We should care about custodians as a matter of inclusivity and potential students success and employee motivation outcomes.

Interactions with students might positively influence custodial staff occupational esteem and by extension, organizational efficiency.

Interactions with custodians might positively influence student success, as suggested by the emotional components of student-staff interactions/mentoring.

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Large Group Discussion

Do you have anything to share about blue-collar workers on your campus?

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Questions?

Suggestions?

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