Creativity – Personality and Individual Differences (PT10603)

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts, theories, paradigms, traits, tests, and validity issues presented in the lecture on Creativity within Personality and Individual Differences.

Creativity

The production of an idea or product that is both novel and useful.

Creative Product Criteria

Must be original AND useful to be considered creative.

Original vs. Creative

All creative acts are original, but not every original act is considered creative because usefulness is required.

Divergent Thinking

Generation of multiple, unique answers to a problem; viewed as a core aspect of creativity.

Convergent Thinking

Generation of a single, correct answer to a problem; typically rewarded in formal education.

Behavioral Paradigm of Creativity

Conceptualizes creativity in terms of novel associations and their behavioral correlates.

Biological Paradigm of Creativity

Studies physiological and neural correlates of creative thinking.

Clinical Paradigm of Creativity

Examines links between creativity and abnormal behavior or psychological disorders.

Cognitive Paradigm of Creativity

Focuses on cognitive processes such as attention and memory; includes techniques like brainstorming.

Developmental Paradigm of Creativity

Investigates changes in creativity across the lifespan and family influences.

Educational Paradigm of Creativity

Assesses how teaching methods influence student creativity; notes bias toward convergent thinking.

Brainstorming

Group idea-generation technique where participants voice ideas without self-censorship.

Person Approach

Examines personality traits and abilities characteristic of creative individuals.

Process Approach

Analyzes cognitive mechanisms underlying creative thinking.

Product Approach

Studies characteristics of creative outcomes themselves.

Press Approach

Explores interaction between creators and their environments.

Guilford’s Structure of Intellect

A multidimensional intelligence model (120+ abilities) that incorporated creativity.

Divergent Production

Guilford’s term for producing multiple solutions to a problem.

Flexibility (Creativity Trait)

Ability to shift perspectives or strategies when generating ideas.

Fluency (Creativity Trait)

Number of ideas produced in a given time.

Originality (Creativity Trait)

Uniqueness or infrequency of generated ideas.

Investment Theory of Creativity

Sternberg & Lubart’s view that creative people ‘buy low, sell high’ on ideas that are initially undervalued.

Synthetic Intelligence

Combines different cognitions to form novel associations.

Analytical Intelligence

Judges value and appropriateness of ideas.

Practical Intelligence

Applies creative ideas effectively in real-life contexts and persuades others of their value.

Multiple Intelligences Theory

Gardner’s model proposing eight independent abilities, e.g., musical, spatial, linguistic.

Threshold Theory

Guilford’s notion that a minimum level of intelligence is required for creativity.

Three-Ring Theory of Giftedness

Renzulli’s model positioning giftedness at the crossroads of creativity, high IQ, and task commitment.

Psychoticism

Eysenck’s personality dimension linked to both creative and psychopathological thinking.

Overinclusive Thinking

Tendency to incorporate irrelevant information; seen in creativity and some mental disorders.

Curvilinear Creativity–Psychopathology Link

Moderate originality signals normal creativity; extremely high originality may indicate psychopathology.

Openness to Experience

Big Five trait most strongly tied to creativity, involving aesthetic sensitivity and curiosity.

Big Five & Creativity

Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Openness positively relate; Agreeableness and Conscientiousness relate negatively.

Intrinsic Motivation

Internal drive to engage in activities for inherent satisfaction; higher in creatives.

Alternate Uses Test (AUT)

Open-ended task asking for many uses of a common object; scored on originality, fluency, flexibility, elaboration, and appropriateness.

Remote Associates Test (RAT)

Mednick’s 30-item test where three cue words require a single connecting word.

Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT)

Divergent-thinking test involving tasks like listing red edible things or linking words in sentences.

Predictive Validity (Creativity Tests)

Extent to which test scores forecast real-life creative achievements.

Incremental Validity

Degree to which creativity tests explain unique variance beyond personality and IQ.

Discriminant Validity

Evidence that creativity tests measure something distinct from established traits or abilities.

Reliability (Creativity Testing)

Consistency with which creative responses are scored or classified.

Creative vs. Uncreative Professions

Occupational domains differ in average creativity levels and associated traits like psychoticism.

Novel Association

Creation of new connections between previously unrelated ideas or concepts.

Subjective Usefulness Problem

Evaluation of a creative idea’s usefulness can vary by observer or context.

Creativity Across Lifespan

Developmental research tracking how creative ability changes with age and life experiences.

Scientists vs. Non-Scientists (Personality)

Higher Openness, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness distinguish scientists from non-scientists.

Eminence–IQ Correlation

Historical biographical studies found modest links (e.g., Cox, 1926 r≈.06) between intelligence and creative impact.

Creativity & Adaptation

Creative thinking aids flexible adaptation to evolutionary or environmental change.

Creative Self-Belief

Individual’s confidence in their own creative abilities; influences creative performance.