[xmonad] studying xmonad code as a guideline for gui-code?

Hi all, I'm wondering if studying xmonad code will help me write better gui code. I've got some ui-code for wxHaskell, with several drop downs where the selection of one drop-down effects the contents of every other drop-down. I wrote this with IORefs all over the place and I think this problem begs for a zipperish solution. I have only glimpsed at the xmonad code but I don't remember seeing even a single IORef, so I am asking for your opinion: Can studying xmonad code provide me with a better solution for my problem? Günther