problem 4 - creativity

Question 1

creativity as a problem - 5 steps

Answer 1

1. problem recognition
2. preparation - info on the problem space is collected from external sources or memory
3. idea generation - multiple solutions to the problems are generated
4. evaluation - potential solutions are then evaluated; which solution best solves the problem and meets all requirements?
5. implementation

Question 2

intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation

(and relation to creativity)

Answer 2

intrinsic = motivation stemming from the task itself
extrinsic = motivation to gain some extrinsic reward

intrinsic motivation seen as a precursor of creativity VS rewards (extrinsic) believed to reduce intrinsic motivation
- BUT research on neg effect of rewards is scarce

both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation might enhance creativity bc individuals are more motivated to engage in the processes leading to creativity, and to show persistence

Question 3

context and creativity

job design: autonomy & job complexity

Answer 3

research has linked autonomy and job complexity to creativity requirements and higher creative performance:
* ppl in complex jobs with high levels of autonomy - have many options in how to carry out their tasks = leads to creativity
* both autonomy and job complexity are intrinsically motivating - linked to creativity
* experience higher levels of positive affect, which facilitates creative problem-solving

Question 4

context and creativity

job design: demands

Answer 4

relationship between demands & creativity is complex - mixed findings:
* challenging work: having a sense of important work to do - seems to stimulate creativity
* workload pressure: excessively high demands - seen as an obstacle that hinders creative thinking

might be that ppl w high self efficacy see high demands as challenges & those w low self efficacy see it as workload pressure

Question 5

context & creativity

social context

Answer 5

informational support: indicates that valuable information is exchanged
emotional support: indicates that individuals care about each other and provide encouragement

both forms of support, but primarily informational support, are provided when work groups are characterized by high levels of communication
* groups w more communication → higher levels of creativity
* communication in the work group has been linked to both individual and team innovation

Question 6

macro perspective (jobs & creativity)

the 3 facets of organizational culture & climate

Answer 6

1. affective facet: the perception of employees that there are pos social relationships in the organization + that individuals care about each other & treat each other w respect
2. cognitive facet: the perception that learning and improvement are important, that change is accepted and innovation is supported
3. instrumental facet: the perception that structure and hierarchy are important in the organization, that extrinsic rewards of pay are used, and that there are high levels of demands and challenges

Question 7

macro perspective (jobs & creativity)

the 3 facets x creativity

Answer 7

affective and cognitive facets are linked to higher levels of employee creativity
* organization w an affective climate → employees will trust each other and share ideas openly without fear that neg consequences will follow
* organization w a cognitive climate → employees will see a high necessity to develop novel and useful ideas (creative requirements)

Question 8

micro perspective (jobs & creativity)

affective work events x creativity

Answer 8

• individuals can be more creative when experiencing pos affect
• suggested that goal progress or task mastery is an important precursor of pos affect at work
• pos affect arises when individuals are able to do their job + this pos affect fosters their daily engagement in creative processes

Question 9

3 ways to foster creativity at work

Answer 9

1. build trusting relationships among employees and foster a supportive climate
2. strengthen the perception that creativity is required
3. provide a working environment that allows employees to experience positive affect

Question 10

general relationship between mindfulness & creativity

Answer 10

mindfulness is beneficial for several affective & cog factors, many of which are imp for driving creativtiy - e.g. pos affect, WM & cog flexibility

expect a uniform and pos link between mindfulness & creativity - HOWEVER, mindfulness is a multifaceted construct = is plausible that the relationship actually depends on the specific mindfulness component activated

Question 11

observation vs AWA in predicting creativity

Answer 11

observation: associated with increased cog flexibility, distributed attentional focus & inhibition of automatic responding - all cog mechanisms that constitute key drivers of creative cognition

acting w awareness: associated with restrictive attentional & reduced mind wandering - may be detrimental for creative idea generation

Question 12

baas et al (2014)

uniform vs differential hypothesis

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 12

uniform hypothesis: a pos relationship between mindfulness and creativity across individual components of mindfulness
differential hypothesis: mindfulness skills may differentially predict creativity, with observation being more strongly related to creativity than AWA

Question 13

baas et al (2014)

study 1

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 13

examined the association between the mindfulness skill AWA and creative ideation
* measured big 5 traits & intelligence as other potential influencing variables
* creative ideation task

results: AWA was associated with decreased originality, infrequency of ideas, and fluency
* shows that the AWA was associated with decreased rather than increased creativity

supports differential hypothesis

Question 14

baas et al (2014)

study 2

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 14

tested the contrasting predictions by linking creativity indicators to the different dimensions of KIMS (measures all 4 mindfulness skills)
* creative ideation task
* also measured self-reported creative achievements & behavior

results:
* of the 4 skills, observation was the only reliable predictor of creative achievements, creative behavior, and originality
* except for fluency, observation was reliably associated with increased creativity and flexibility
* inconsistent with findings from Study 1, results from study 2 showed that AWA was not associated with creativity

further support for differential hypothesis

Question 15

baas et al (2014)

study 3

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 15

aimed to provide causal evidence for the mindfulness–creativity link using a longitudinal design in which mindfulness was manipulated with an extensive 8-week mindfulness training
* target variables mindfulness skills and creative behavior were measured before the start and during the final week of training
* no creative ideation task
* control & mindfulness conditions

results:
* observation was the only consistent predictor of creative behavior
* strongest increase in mindfulness skills was seen for observation
* mindfulness experience increased in mindfulness condition but not in control
* overall change in mindfulness DID NOT predict change in creative behavior + increase in observation skills due to mindfulness training PARTLY EXPLAINED the increase in creative behavior

supports differential hypothesis

Question 16

baas et al (2014)

study 4

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 16

measured particpant’s mood & motivation as mediators + addressed issue of lack of specificity from study 3
* participants listened to a mindfulness meditation fragment that was based on transcripts of meditation manipulations - either observation or AWA condition
* same creative ideation task + measure of mood & motivation
* mindfulness manipulation check

results:
* observation condition → more original and generated more infrequent ideas than those in the AWA condition
* Participants’ motivation does not play a mediating role

supports differential hypothesis

Question 17

baas et al (2014)

conclusion

(mindfulness & creativity)

Answer 17

all studies clearly support the differential hypothesis + provide strong evidence for a differential relation between mindfulness and creativity

observation was the only skill that consistenly predicted enhanced creativity
* ability to observe has been associated with increased cognitive flexibility - considered a key driver of creativity

relation between AWA and creativity is less consistent
* Study 1 - AWA was negatively associated with creativity
* study 2 - AWA did not predict creativity
* study 3 - zero-order correlations showed no reliable relation between AWA
* some aspects of AWA may harm creativity (e.g. narrow attention) other may facilitate (e.g. WM capacity)

Question 18

psychopathologies

approach vs avoidance systems

Answer 18

approach system: deals with appetitive motivation & approach behavior toward rewarding and novel stimuli + chronic approach sensitivity, especially toward novel stimuli
* associated with increased creativity
* psychopathologies - hypomania, positive schizotypy

avoidance system: deals with withdrawal motivation & avoidance behavior away from aversive stimuli and threatening circumstances
* associated with decreased creativity
* psychopathologies - anxiety, depressive moods, negative schizotypy

Question 19

approach system & creativity

Answer 19

activation of the approach system stimulates flexible thinking and the engagement in creative experiences, = promotes creativity

chronic sensitivity of the approach system - reflected in stronger novelty seeking, extraversion, pos affectivity, openness to experience, and approach temperament

approach motivation associated with enhanced flexibility, engagement in creative experiences, and creative performance

Question 20

avoidance system & creativity

Answer 20

activation of the avoidance system stifles flexible thinking and the engagement in creative experiences = prevents creativity

chronic sensitivity of the avoidance system - reflected in stronger neuroticism, neg affectivity, and avoidance temperament

avoidance-related traits and states - associated with reduced flexibility and bc chronic avoidance sensitivity also associates with a reduced preference for things novel and creative, it generally predicts decreased creativity

Question 21

avoidance system & vulnerability to psychopathology

Answer 21

symptoms associated with anxiety and depressive disorders as well as the negative symptoms of schizophrenia → are all linked to increased sensitivity in the avoidance system

anxiety: grounded in the avoidance system - trait anxiety is related to high neuroticism, negative emotionality, and avoidance temperament

depressive mood: grounded in the avoidance system - is negatively related to positive emotionality and positively related to anxiety, neuroticism, negative emotionality, and avoidance temperament

Question 22

approach system & vulnerability to psychopathology

Answer 22

symptoms associated with bipolar disorders and, to a lesser extent, the pos symptoms associated with psychotic disorders → have been linked to increased sensitivity in the approach system

schizotypy: unusual experiences (pos schizotypy, approach system), implusive nonconformity, anhedonia (neg schizotypy, avoidance system) & cognitive disorganiztion

hypomania: characterized by pervasive elevated or irritable moods, and thoughts and behaviors that are consistent with such moods

Question 23

baas et al (2020)

hypotheses

(creativity & psychopathology)

Answer 23

inclinations toward psychopathologies that are grounded in the avoidance system (anxiety, depressive mood, negative schizotypy) will negatively predict creativity

inclinations toward psychopathologies that are grounded in the approach system (hypomania, positive schizotypy) will positively predict creativity

Question 24

baas et al (2020)

study 1a & 1b

(creativity & psychopathology)

Answer 24

measured anxiety, depressive mood, hypomania, and schizotypy + had participants generate creative uses for a brick to assess creative performance (Study 1a) or report creative achievements in different domains (Study 1b)

results:
* pos schizotypy & hypomania → associated with increased creative ideation & creative achievements
* consistent with predictions, approach VTP positively predicted creative ideation but avoidance VTP did not predict
* consistent with predictions, approach VTP positively predicted creative achievements but avoidance VTP did not

Question 25

baas et al (2020)

study 2

(creativity & psychopathology)

Answer 25

identical to study 1 procedure BUT used 3 diff measures of creatvity rather than just 1
measured creative behavior, achievements & ideation

results:
* pos schizotypy and hypomania were associated with increased creative behavior and achievements
* consistent with predictions, approach VTP positively predicted creativity
* inconsistent with predictions, but consistent with the results described in Study 1, avoidance VTP did not predict creativity

Question 26

baas et al (2020)

study 3

(creativity & psychopathology)

Answer 26

considered approach sensitivity as a potential mediator and focused specifically on chronic approach sensitivity toward novelty seeking
* predicted that approach VTP pos predicts novelity seeking & creativity (& avoidance neg predicts)
* measured VTP, novelty seeking & creative behavior

results
* consistent with predictions, approach VTP positively predicted novelty seeking and avoidance VTP negatively predicted novelty seeking
* novelty seeking, in turn, positively predicted creativity

Question 27

baas et al (2020)

conclusions

(creativity & psychopathology)

Answer 27

Showed that, when approach and avoidance related psychopathology were simultaneously used to predict creativity, avoidance VTP has little or no effects on creativity, whereas approach VTP is associated with increased creativity

also showed that approach rather than avoidance VTP positively predicts various indicators of creativity because it associates with stronger individual differences in novelty seeking