C E L E B R AT I N G
90 YEARS!
YOU. US. INDY.
MARCH 30-APRIL 2
That’s Dirty Talk!
Reinventing Our Perceptions of
Campus Blue-Collar Employees
#ACPA14
ACPA Conference
April 1, 2014
Jeremy Reed
Phd Student, University of Iowa
jeremy-reed@uiowa.edu
#ACPA14
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
#ACPA14
Session Learning Outcomes
Session 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.
One Minute Free Write
What words come to mind when you
think of the blue-collar workers on
your campus?
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Free Write Share
Discuss in small groups.
Anyone care to share with the
entire group?
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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 bluecollar 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 Studies
Blue-Collar Identity Theory
College Student Development/Success
Faculty/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 as a
Counterbalance to
Custodial Staff “Dirty
Work” Stigma
“Dirty Work”
Stigma
Relationships
Blue-Collar
Identity
Characteristics
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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?
Case Study Research Design
Three Participants
Particularity 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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Research Methods
Data
Verification
-Reflexive Writing
-Member Checking
-Data Saturation
-Disconfirming
Examples
Data Collection
-Participant
Observation
-Interviews
-Artifact Analysis
Data Analysis
-Data Sorting
-Data Coding
-Reflexive Writing
-Member Checking
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Assigned and Assumed Duties of Custodians
as Institutional Agents
Employee Assumed
Duties
-Student Mentoring and Support
Interactions
Campus
Institutional
--------------------------------------------------------------------------Custodian
Mission
Institution
Assigned Duties
-Cleaning and Maintenance
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Potential Influence of Assigned and Assumed Duties of Custodians
as Institutional Agents
Employee Assumed
Duties
Positive
Esteem
Campus
Custodian
Negative
Esteem
-Student Mentoring and Support
and Interactions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Institution
Assigned Duties
-Cleaning and Maintenance
Institutional
Mission
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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 studentstaff interactions/mentoring.
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Large Group Discussion
Do you have anything to share about
blue-collar workers on your campus?
Questions?
Suggestions?
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#ACPA14
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