The popular name for the theory of the Four Rooms of Change is “The Four Rooms” or “The Four Room Apartment”, which originated from Claes Janssen’s acclaimed research in the 1970s.
The Four Rooms of Change, often referred to as the four room apartment, has its origins in Claes Janssen’s research from the 1960s and 1970s. One of the most notable discoveries is the personality variable that Janssen identified and which had not previously been mentioned in psychology. This variable is expressed in how individuals answer a number of questions in the psychological test Janssen came to call the Outsider Scale.
In his thesis, Claes Janssen discovered and described four related, easily identifiable basic psychological states. One of these states, Contentment, had not been mentioned in psychology before, and another, Self-censorship, appeared in a completely new light. The interaction between these discoveries, together with the recognition effect and the psychometrics that verified the various parts of the theory, is what makes the theory so versatile and accessible. It can simply be described as robust.
The Four Rooms theory helps us better understand what happens to people, groups, and organizations in times of change and stability, in crises, and in everyday life. It also helps us better understand—and accept—how specific personality traits affect our experience of reality and our relationships with it, both our own and others’.
The theory is practical enough to be applied to virtually any social system an individual belongs to.
Based on research results, Claes Janssen collaborated with A&L Partners AB to develop highly practical, user-friendly analytical instruments to help individuals and organizations improve self-understanding, productivity, and readiness for change.
Since the mid-1990s, A&L Partners has collaborated with Claes Janssen to promote the use of the theory and tools in Sweden and internationally. So far, the focus has mainly been on applications for working life. Over the years, with the help of an increasing number of certified users, applications for new areas have been developed. Examples include schools, classrooms, team sports, families, and diversity. Development and dissemination continue at an increasing pace.
Janssen developed the central concepts of Personal Dialectics and the Outsider Scale during his research project at Stockholm University from 1964 to 1975.
Claes Janssen’s doctoral thesis was titled Personal Dialectics: On Self-Censorship, Outsider Experiences, and Integration.
The concept of the Four Rooms of Change emerged as a direct result of the thesis work and subsequent commercialization of the theory. Following the thesis work, product development began in collaboration with various professional consulting firms. Commercial use has continued over the years, leading to the registration of various trademarks in many countries and on several continents.
Some important dates:
1964
Research begins with a commission from the Swedish Film Institute. The original theme was “The Will to Censor.”
1975
Claes Janssen submits his dissertation. It is approved, and he receives a docentship in 1976 for his extensive research work.
1977
Janssen began collaborating with a Swedish consulting firm, and they immediately began applying Personal Dialectics and the Outsider Scale to management training programs for companies of all sizes.
1978
Janssen begins collaborating with renowned American organizational consultant Marvin Weisbord from Philadelphia. Weisbord wrote about and used the Four-Room Model in many different contexts. He first wrote about it in a book in 1985, titled Productive Workplaces. The third edition was published in January 2012, and the model now occupies a central and developed place in the presentation. There are also several practical uses for it.
1982
Janssen returns to the university as a lecturer at the School of Social Work, where he is responsible for teaching leadership and organizational courses. The Four-Room Model is included in several courses and sub-courses. Janssen retired from his position at Stockholm University in 2007.
1985
The Organizational Barometer is created and begins to be used commercially immediately.
1988
A seven-question questionnaire is created to allow people to understand the theory without going through the entire Personal Dialectics process.
1988
Janssen begins collaborating with Mercuri International.
1993
Bengt Lindström seeks out Claes Janssen at Stockholm University’s School of Social Work. This meeting marked the beginning of the collaboration with A&L Partners AB.
1995
W&W publishes the book Laugh with God: An Introduction to Existential Psychology.
1996
The book The Four Rooms of Change: Practical Everyday Psychology is published in Sweden by W&W.
1997
A certification program is launched in Sweden by A&L Partners AB in close collaboration with Janssen. Also in 1997, Försvar för Djävulen, Arketypisk psykologi (Defense for the Devil, Archetypal Psychology) was published. IKEA signs the first corporate license for customized material, Fyrarummaren — Möblerad av IKEA (The Four Rooms — Furnished by IKEA), used by over 100,000 IKEA employees worldwide.
1998
A certification program is launched in the US by A&L Partners AB and local partners.
2000
Ulla Janssen began developing Barnens Fyrarummare (‘The Children’s Four-Room Apartment’) for use in elementary school classrooms.
2002
Janssen publishes her work in a report from Uppsala University titled: Psykologi i klassrummet (Psychology in the Classroom). That same year, she presented her findings to the Fyrarummaren User Forum at a conference in Sandhamn.
2007
Requests from Finland, Singapore, South Africa, California, and Australia arrived almost simultaneously: “How can we bring Fyrarummaren to our country and do what you do in Sweden here?” That was roughly how the question was phrased from these locations. A&L launched an English-language certification program in Sweden that same year.
2009
The goal of selling 10,000 Fyrarummaren materials per year to end customers through certified users was exceeded.
2010
Certification programs began in Finland and Australia. At the same time, work began developing and securing the distribution chain in various countries.
2011
A comprehensive school development project launches in Victoria, Australia, with seven participating schools. A research project led by Swinburne University staff in Melbourne studies the effects during the first pilot year.
2012
Certification programs begin in Croatia, targeting the entire Balkan region.
2013
Janssen publishes four books on Fyrarummaren: two in Swedish and two in English. Publisher: A&L Partners AB.
2014
The annual User Conference attracted more than 100 participants. The IHM Business School decided to organize its own certification program, intending to make the Four Rooms one of the cornerstones of the training company’s activities.
2016
Several media outlets reported that Torsby Municipality in Värmland had the lowest sick leave rate of all 290 municipalities in Sweden for the second consecutive year. They attribute a significant part of this success to The Four Rooms of Change. Representatives from the municipality participated in the annual User Conference and shared their challenges, successes, and contributing factors. Several small- and medium-sized companies, organizations, and government agencies decide to use The Four Rooms and the Organizational Barometer as the basis for their systematic work environment efforts.
2017
In 2017, the number of annual program starts for the Swedish certification program increased from two to four. Early in 2017, new statistics and figures from SKL confirmed that Torsby Municipality had the lowest staff sick leave for the third consecutive year. In 2016, Torsby shared this distinction with two other municipalities. The Four Rooms of Change was granted Approved Training Provider status by AFA. The annual User Conference is held in Stockholm at the end of August/beginning of September with around 60 participants from Sweden, Italy, Croatia, and Australia, along with their guests.
For a more detailed timeline of Fyrarummaren’s development stages, see the revised and expanded Four Rooms of Change, Part I.
Read more about the Four Rooms of Change
- Main page about the Four Rooms of Change
- The Four Rooms of Change as a theory
- The models in the Four Rooms of Change
- The Four Rooms of Change around the world
- Trademarks and rights
- Quality Assurance
- Criticism of the Four Rooms of Change
The Four Rooms of Change® is a registered trademark in Sweden and many other parts of the world. This means that only certified users can use the various trademarks, as well as the texts, concepts, analytical tools, and models developed within the framework of the theory. Learn more about the rights to use the Four Rooms of Change.