OAKLAND, Calif. — Need to inject some positivity into your home? A little spring cleaning might just do the trick, a new study finds.
Clorox, the household name in the cleaning industry, recently released findings from a multifaceted study it conducted in which the findings suggest that keeping a neat living space promotes empathy.
The study’s first component consisted of an online survey of 2,000 American adults which found that those who enjoyed the act of cleaning were 25% happier that those who did not.
Furthermore, those who frequently spruced up the house didn’t seem to experience diminishing returns: for each extra hour of cleaning a week, the average respondent’s happiness increased by 53%.
Regular cleaning was also associated with other positive health outcomes, including improved relaxation (indicated by 80% of respondents), heightened focus (77%), better sleep (72%), and increased productivity (72%), the researchers found.
Respondents who also happened to be parents were asked additional questions about how they believed their kids benefited from cleaning their room.
Nearly 60% of parents said their kids studied better when their room was clean, and about half (49%) indicated that their child’s behavior saw marked improvement.
On a related note, teaching cleaning habits from a young age conferred great benefits: children who were assigned cleaning as a chore were 64% more likely to exhibit empathy, and 60% more willing to help others in their community as an adult.
“There’s nothing more important to me as a dad than making sure my kids grow up to be kind and resilient adults and I think that’s something that connects all parents,” comments actor Sterling K. Brown, a celebrity spokesman for Clorox, in a press release.
The study’s second component had 20 participants take part in an experiment that was intended to help validate the survey’s prior results.
Participants, who were filmed and equipped with biometric sensors, were asked to enter two rooms that were nearly identical. The catch? One room was filthy and the other spotless.
Using the tools at their disposal, the researchers found that participants saw a 45% and 44% increase in “liking” and “attraction” (correlated with improved happiness); a 20% improvement in critical thinking ability (correlated with increased productivity); and 127% decrease in disgust (correlated with stress) upon entering the clean room.
For all of you slobs out there, there’s now actual proof that keeping your house a mess has real consequences.
Clorox’s survey was conducted online in late September of last year. The study’s experimental component was conducted in early November, and a statistical modeling technique was used to analyze its results.
Only people with no life, outside interests or a healthy curiosity enjoy cleaning.
I totally agree. My best friend loves to clean and especially iron. What a waste of time!
I hate to clean, but I do sleep well! Sometimes, after an extra long nap, I am better than ever before!
So this would make Germany and Holland the happiest countries in the world?
causation, or correlation?
People Who Enjoy Cleaning The House Are Happier? They can come over to my place and be ecstatic.
I’m only 20% happier, not 25% – what am I doing wrong?
I wash the dishes, sweep or mop the floors, do the laundry, take out the trash, all those things a bachelor must do. And then, as if that’s not enough, 6 months later I do it all again!
I find that not doing windows makes me very happy. Very.
I’m a guy. Cleaning is not my responsibility. I said it, I meant it, that’s it. I do stuff that disgusts my main squeeze – like her bathoom plumbing. What in the Seven Gates of Hell do they put down there? She rots faucet cores.
And every-time I wash the car, it seems to run better. And I think I can pick up more chicks which is probably a myth but it does feel better. DUH!
Truth, a clean car runs better! Freshly waxed even better.
My grandmother always kept a very clean and tidy house in the event that visitors would come by unannounced, perhaps for coffee or to share a meal, and she believed that her home was a reflection of her. At the very least her kitchen and bathroom were always spotless. She accomplished this while raising five children on a Midwestern farm, cooking three big meals a day for about a dozen people, tending huge gardens in the summer (vegetables, fruit, flowers), canning hundreds of jars of tomatoes, green beans, pickles, etc., doing everyone’s laundry (including IRONING the sheets!), and taking every Sunday off to go to church and socialize (she cooked ahead for Sundays, except holidays). She accomplished more in a day than most people do in a week, and she was very happy and immensely popular. Let THAT sink in.
My mother used to say cleaning made her happier than anything she did.Not I know why.
Was she taking those little “Diet” pills she got from her doctor?
Just another self-serving study from a big corporation. Cleaning makes me totally cranky and the chemicals give me headaches. I would much rather be out riding my bike.
Then don’t use chemicals. I clean with vinegar, mostly, or just warm water with a couple of drops of dish detergent. I do admit that I have to use scouring powder in the bathtub, though. I also ride a bicycle often, but it’s more fun coming home to a clean abode.
That’s a lie! I HATE cleaning, yet I still manage to sleep great AND I am happy.
I am sure all those cleaning ladies around the world would be much happier if someone cleaned for them, just saying.
I’m happy watching you clean my house.
They also have cleaner houses and fewer children, pets and visitors.