The Psychology behind Tidying and Decluttering
I spoke to Dr Chris Stiff, (Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Keele University) about the psychological benefits of tidying and decluttering the home and workplace.
Q: What would you say are the main Psychological benefits of living in a tidy and clutter free environment? What are the negative impacts of living with clutter on a daily basis?
A: There are some clear benefits in terms of simply making your life easier, and less stressful. Finding things when you need them, knowing exactly where to put something away, and having clear living spaces are all good for reducing domestic headaches. It can also help with conflicts between those living together, as there is less chance for things to go missing.
There are also some perhaps less obvious benefits. Planning and then completing a complex task helps increase our sense of ‘self-efficacy’ – the feeling that we can accomplish things. It improves our competence and mastery of our surroundings, which then has a knock-on effect the next time we try and tackle something challenging. By creating a clutter-free environment, we have a clear visual feedback signal that “I can do this”, which is very useful when we come up against something that might initially seem daunting.
Q: Tidying and decluttering are known to reduce stress and anxiety and a lot of people have had a good tidy up during lockdown. Is this because tidying up and decluttering is a way for us to have some form of control over our environment?
A: That’s correct. Most animals – including humans! – hate lack of control and unpredictability. It can lead to all kinds of stress and worry when we don’t know what will happen next. A sense of autonomy and control over our life is often touted as one of the key psychological needs for happiness and contentment. By tidying up, clearing out, and taking control over our living spaces, we can fulfil that need. As well as this, clutter and mess can affect us on a physiological level. “Busy” or cluttered environment tend to heighten our levels of cortisol – the “stress” hormone. So by tidying, we can actually improve our physical health.
Q: Some people say that in the workplace they operate better in a ‘messy environment’ as it makes them more ‘creative’. Is that true or does it depend what your ‘mess’ is in the workplace?
A: Some people may say that, but typically that is a justification for not wanting to allocate time and energy to tidying up! We are very good at rationalising what they want to believe, and the notion of a “disorganised genius” is something of a romantic fiction! The problem is we are not taught “how” to tidy, or the most efficient way to become clutter free. We know we need to get rid of the debris in our work space, but how to start? That lack of knowledge can immediately stymie any desire to get things in order. By following a clear methodology from start to finish, we can get things tidied easily.
Q: In your article for ‘The Conversation’ you write that “the KonMari Method is rigorous and requires commitment, time and energy to complete to its fullest”. You mention that for some people there is a concern that without Marie Kondo “standing over” them, they won’t be able to finish tidying their house and will give up, resulting in feeling a sense of failure. What are the psychological benefits of having a KonMari Consultant guide people through this kind of journey?
A: First, having a trained consultant in place will help eliminate the feeling that a person doesn’t know how to get started, or what to do once they do start. As I say, we are not really ever shown how to tidy ‘properly’! By having someone there to guide them through, the stress of not knowing how to efficiently tidy and declutter is gone. Second, the feeling of having someone evaluate your performance and check up on you – even in a friendly manner! – is very motivating. People are more successful in their endeavours when they involve other people (e.g. when losing weight, or giving up smoking). Tidying is no different! Third, a consultant can encourage and motivate with success stories when a person may feel overwhelmed by the task ahead of them.
