Cultural and Bilingual Influences on Artistic Creativity Performances: Comparison of German and Chinese Students

Understanding Zhongyong Using a Zhongyong Approach: Re-examining the Non-linear Relationship Between Creativity and the Confucian Doctrine of the Mean

Zhongyong, a central theme of Confucian thought, refers to the “doctrine of the mean,” or the idea that moderation in all things is the optimal path. Despite considerable interest in the relationship between zhongyong and creativity, especially in China, studies of this relationship have not yielded consistent results. Based on a review of the literature, we hypothesized that this inconsistency arises from the dual nature of zhongyong itself, which has both a positive side, promoting creativity, and a negative side, inhibiting creativity. We also hypothesized that the negative side of zhongyong takes the form of excessive zhongyong. Indeed, the observations that every coin has two sides and that too much of a good thing is as bad as too little are core principles of zhongyong in traditional Chinese culture. To test these hypotheses, we conducted two empirical studies (measuring explicit and implicit zhongyong personality, respectively) to examine the relationships between positive and negative zhongyong and creativity (measured in terms of creative personality, divergent thinking, and convergent thinking). The results of both studies revealed an interaction between positive zhongyong and negative zhongyong, indicating that only a moderate level of zhongyong is conducive to creativity; both deficiency and excess are harmful. We discuss the implications of these results, suggesting that a zhongyong approach can help to clarify non-linear relationships between things, and recommending to re-assess the creativity of Chinese culture from a neutral and objective outlook. This paper deepens understanding of zhongyong and offers clear insights into creativity from an in-depth cultural perspective.

Cultural Variations in Evaluation of Creative Work: A Comparison of Russian and Emirati Samples

The study investigates how cultural variations influence evaluation of creative work. Russian and Emirati undergraduate college students were asked to judge alien creature drawings produced by their country mates in previous studies’ structured imagination test. We found cultural differences in creativity judgment. Emirati participants’ judgments were significantly lower than Russian participants’ judgments. We also found that Russians judged their compatriots significantly higher than the Emirati judged their compatriots. Russians also judged foreigners significantly lower than the Emirati judged foreigners. These findings were speculatively placed in the context of the cultural differences in the implicit theory of creativity.

Middle School Students From China's Rice Area Show More Adaptive Creativity but Less Innovative and Boundary-Breaking Creativity

The present study aimed to conduct a cross-cultural comparison of creative thinking among Chinese middle school students from the rice- and wheat-growing areas in China through the lens of the rice theory, which postulates that there are major psychological differences among the individuals in these agricultural regions. Differences in cultural mindsets and creativity between the rice group (n = 336) and the wheat group (n = 347) were identified using the Chinese version of (1) the Auckland Individualism and Collectivism Scale (AICS) and (2) the Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production (TCT-DP), respectively. Interesting findings were obtained. The results of latent mean analyses indicate that the rice group showed significantly more collectivism and adaptive creativity than the wheat group but less individualism and innovative and boundary-breaking creativity. However, the two groups showed no significant differences in their overall creative performance, as reflected in the TCT-DP composite score. Moreover, results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that collectivism was positively related to adaptive creativity but negatively related to innovative and boundary-breaking creativity; however, a reverse pattern was found for individualism. These findings enrich the discourse regarding the rice theory and shed important light on the effect of culture on creativity.

Partial measurement invariance of beliefs about teaching for creativity across U.S. and Chinese educators

BACKGROUND

While empirical research on creativity has grown steadily over the past 35 years, teachers' beliefs about creativity and their implicit beliefs about teaching for creativity remains understudied, as well as cross-cultural examination of teacher beliefs in this area.

AIMS

This study explored the measurement invariance of beliefs about teaching for creativity (creative self-efficacy, fixed creative mindset, growth creative mindset, desirability of creativity for teaching success and value of creativity for student academic and workplace success).

SAMPLE

American and Chinese educators at two universities were surveyed to rate the degree to which they agreed with statements about beliefs about teaching for creativity (N = 376).

METHODS

Measurement invariance analysis was used Multiple-Groups Confirmatory Factor Analysis with the lavaan package in the R Statistical Programing Environment.

RESULTS

Partial measurement invariance was obtained such that a model with factor loadings constrained equal across samples for four of the five constructs (creative self-efficacy, fixed creative mindset, growth creative mindset, desirability of creativity for teaching success), did not worsen model fitness. Additionally, when factor loadings for items on the value of creativity for student academic and workplace success latent variable were allowed to vary across samples, we found evidence of structural invariance. That is, the covariances among the five latent variables were found to be invariant across samples.

CONCLUSIONS

The major result of this study is that the theoretical structure and relations among five important creative self-constructs is invariant across American and Chinese educational constructs. However, there may be cultural differences in the value of creativity for student academic and workplace success, as perceived by teachers. Future research can focus on calibrating teacher beliefs about teaching for creativity with classroom observation, in American and Chinese educational contexts.

The relationships between bilingual learning, willingness to study abroad and convergent creativity

Convergent creativity is a form of creative thinking that uses existing knowledge or traditional methods to analyze available information and generate an appropriate solution. The differences in the performance of participants in convergent creativity caused by bilingual learning is a popular research area in creativity. A final sample of 68 participants was asked to complete the remote associates test (RAT). The results indicate that a moderate positive correlation exists between bilingual learning and convergent creativity. Students who want to study abroad perform better on the RAT than those who do not, and this effect is mediated by second language proficiency. These findings suggest that improving students' English proficiency and increasing their opportunities to study abroad may be effective ways to promoting convergent creativity.

Fostering Creativity in Intercultural and Interdisciplinary Teams: The VICTORY Model

Teams are pervasive in the history of mankind. Particularly in our fast-growing modern society, teams composed of members from different cultures and disciplines are quite often used at the workplace. Though widely used, the effectiveness of teams is inconsistent. Meta-analyses report a double-edged effect of diversity on creativity and innovation, suggesting that diversity needs to be tactfully managed if we want to leverage the creative potential of teams. The current paper strives to meet this challenge and makes recommendations on how to foster creativity in intercultural and interdisciplinary teams. It discusses the concepts of teams vs. groups and creativity vs. innovation. Drawing upon sociocultural theories of creativity and innovation, particularly literature reviews and meta-analyses, this paper attempts to identify non-cognitive, cognitive and environmental enablers of team creativity. The VICTORY model offers a summary of these enablers, as it focuses on team (T) and synthesizes both non-cognitive (Vision, Openness, Risk-taking, Yes-I-Can Mindset) and cognitive (Ideation, Combination) antecedents of team creativity. Yet it is only through the combination and integration of environmental factors (including communication, collaboration, and support, among others) that the effect of these antecedents can be fully realized.

More dialectical thinking, less creativity? The relationship between dialectical thinking style and creative personality: the case of China

People use dialectical thinking to be holistic, reconcile contradictions, and emphasize changes when processing information and managing problems. Using a questionnaire survey, this study examined the relationship between dialectical thinking and creative personality in the Chinese culture, which encourages a holistic and collective thinking style. Undergraduates majoring in different subjects and adults in different professions were surveyed. The results showed that 1) compared with undergraduates majoring in art and adults from the design industry, undergraduates majoring in other disciplines significantly showed the least creative personality; 2) the highest score for dialectical thinking was found in the group of undergraduates who majored in other disciplines, followed by the adult group, and the undergraduates majoring in art had the lowest score; and 3) A negative relationship between dialectical thinking and creative personality was found mostly in the UMA group. The limitations of this study and suggestions for future research are discussed.