Creativity and innovation: Skills for the 21st Century

Effectiveness of gamification and selection of appropriate teaching methods of creativity: Students' perspectives

Complex creativity and multiple learning objectives often require combining several teaching methods, and gamification may be an effective teaching strategy for enhancing learning. However, few studies have examined the combined effects of implementing gamification and multiple teaching methods in a course from students' perspectives. Therefore, this study implemented gamification and six teaching methods of enhancing college students' creativity in university creativity and innovation course in November and December 2021 and aimed to examine the effects on their creativity, collaboration, and communication skills and used the Analytical Hierarchy Process to identify more effective teaching methods corresponding to the learning objectives from students' perspectives. The results showed that students perceive that gamification could stimulate their motivation, attitudes, and interest in learning and enhance their creativity, collaboration, and communication skills. Furthermore, Mandala thinking was the most effective teaching method for the overall goal. In contrast, the most effective teaching methods for the creativity, collaboration, and communication skills learning objectives were the SCAMPER technique, balloon competition, and Mandala thinking, respectively. The results provide essential references for selecting effective teaching methods that meet the teaching objectives.

Boosting Creativity through Users' Avatars and Contexts in Virtual Environments-A Systematic Review of Recent Research

As an artificial space extended from the physical environment, the virtual environment (VE) provides more possibilities for humans to work and be entertained with less physical restrictions. Benefiting from anonymity, one of the important features of VEs, users are able to receive visual stimuli that might differ from the physical environment through digital representations presented in VEs. Avatars and contextual cues in VEs can be considered as digital representations of users and contexts. In this article, we analyzed 21 articles that examined the creativity-boosting effects of different digital user and contextual representations. We summarized the main effects induced by these two digital representations, notably the effect induced by the self-similar avatar, Proteus effect, avatar with Social Identity Cues, priming effect induced by contextual representation, and embodied metaphorical effect. In addition, we examined the influence of immersion on creativity by comparing non-immersive and immersive VEs (i.e., desktop VE and headset VE, respectively). Last, we discussed the roles of embodiment and presence in the creativity in VEs, which were overlooked in the past research.

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Backgrounds

Globally, the most rural healthcare systems are lagging behind those of urban healthcare systems. Especially in rural and remote areas, the essential resources to provide principal health services are inadequate. It is purported that physicians have an important role in healthcare systems. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of studies on physician leadership development in Asia, especially on how to enhance physician leadership competencies in rural and remote low-resource settings. This study aimed to investigate doctors’ perceptions of existing and needed physician leadership competencies based on their experiences in primary care settings in low-resource rural and remote areas are in Indonesia.

Methods

We performed a qualitative study with a phenomenological approach. Eighteen primary care doctors, who worked in rural and remote areas of Aceh, Indonesia, purposively selected, were interviewed. Prior to the interview, participants were asked to select the top-five skills they deemed most essential for their work based on the five domains of the ‘Lead Self’, ‘Engage Others’, ‘Achieve Results’, ‘Develop Coalitions’ and ‘Systems Transformation’ (LEADS) framework. We then performed a thematic analysis of the interview transcripts.

Results

We identified the following qualities a good physician leader in low-resource rural and remote settings should possess: (1) cultural sensitivity skills; (2) a strong character that includes courage and determination; and (3) creativity and flexibility skills.

Conclusions

Local cultural and infrastructural factors create a need for several different competencies within the LEADS framework. A profound amount of cultural sensitivity was considered the most important in addition to the ability to be resilient, versatile and ready for creative problem-solving.

The effect of knowledge sharing and systems thinking on organizational sustainability: the mediating role of creativity

Purpose

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the direct effects of knowledge sharing and systems thinking on creativity and organizational sustainability in the hotel industry in Malaysia. In addition, the study aims to examine the mediation effect of creativity between knowledge sharing, systems thinking and organizational sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey method based on a questionnaire was used to gather data from 407 middle managers in the hotel industry in Malaysia. The partial least squares technique was used to examine the hypotheses.

Findings

The study found support for the effects of systems thinking and knowledge sharing on organizational sustainability. It also found support for the impact of creativity on organizational sustainability. Besides, the mediating role of creativity between systems thinking and organizational sustainability, and between knowledge sharing and organizational sustainability was also supported by data.

Originality/value

This is a pioneer work that has combined various human resources (i.e. systems thinking, knowledge sharing, creativity) to examine their impacts on organizational sustainability. Moreover, this work has established comparatively new relationships, i.e. the impact of systems thinking and knowledge sharing on creativity and organizational sustainability. In addition, the mediation role of creativity between systems thinking, knowledge sharing and organizational sustainability is relatively new in the literature. Furthermore, this study has confirmed the validity and reliability of knowledge sharing and organizational sustainability at first and second orders in the hotel industry in non-Western context.

The effect of knowledge management on intellectual capital, social capital, and firm innovation

Purpose

This study aims to analyze the literature on knowledge management on intellectual capital, social capital and its contribution to Iranian companies’ innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

To investigate knowledge management’s relationship on intellectual capital, social capital and innovation, using structural equation modeling based on data collected from 205 chief executive officers, production managers and marketing managers of Iranian companies. The research instrument is a standard questionnaire consisting of 109 questions in which 5 of them are demographic questions, 26 questions were asked to reveal the knowledge management process, 40 questions for intellectual capital, 21 for social capital and 17 for innovation.

Findings

The results show that knowledge management has a positive and significant relationship between intellectual capital and social capital. Knowledge management did not have a significant effect on innovation. However, intellectual capital and social capital have a significant effect on innovation. On the other hand, knowledge management mediated by intellectual capital and social capital has a positive and significant indirect effect on innovation.

Originality/value

The paper includes the implications for developing knowledge management and intellectual, social capital leading to innovation in manufacturing companies. Knowledge management can improve the innovation performance of a company if it is shared and applied effectively. This study addresses an important subject and the findings may be used by professionals and managers or another person interested in advancing knowledge management that leads to innovation.

Skills for a Working Future: How to Bring about Professional Success from the Educational Setting

Globalization, digitalization, and the permanent alteration of information have led to important changes in the world of work. This demands a realignment of essential skills in order to access job positions in the coming years. In order to face up to the digitalization process, education is one of the ambits that has most come to a tipping point. This adds an urgency to the need to bring skills in line with the new demands of the job market and the challenges posed in the 21st Century. The methodology was based on a systematic review of the most commonly-used databases. It analyzed and synthesized the existing information on the skills required for the future job market and educational proposals to facilitate their acquisition. At the beginning of the search, 2045 records were selected. However, following the application of the exclusion criteria, a total of 63 records were included. From this in-depth analysis, it was uncovered that the most in-demand skill for the job market relates to the management of technology. Different proposals were located which targeted these skills in educational settings. The majority of these pertained to innovative projects emanating from digital and technological phenomena.

Creative use of information and communication technologies according to university professors and students

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of technologies in fostering students’ creativity and motivation in university classrooms, according to professors and students. Nine professors from three groups – those who use information and communication technologies creatively, those who make traditional use of these technologies, and those who do not use information and communication technologies –, were interviewed. Additionally, 249 students completed the Inventory of Teaching Practices for Creativity in Higher Education and the Motivation Scale for Learning. In the professors’ report, it was not noticed a link between technology and the development of creativity. Students whose teachers did not use information and communication technologies evaluated the teaching practices for creativity more positively. The use of digital technologies in the classroom should be planned according to the purposes that are sought to achieve.

Adaptação e evidências de validade baseadas na estrutura interna da Escala de Domínios de Criatividade

A Escala de Domínios de Criatividade (K-DOCS) é amplamente utilizada internacionalmente, embora não haja estudos psicométricos nacionais. O presente estudo teve como objetivo adaptar e investigar as evidências de validade baseada na estrutura interna e na relação com variáveis externas, utilizando-se o Inventário dos Cinco Fatores (BFI-I). Colaboraram com a pesquisa 154 participantes, sendo 55% mulheres, com idades entre 18 e 58 (M=28,2; DP=9,41). A análise fatorial exploratória confirmou cinco fatores (acadêmico, performático, científico, artístico e cotidiano) e não foram excluídos itens da versão original. Observou-se convergência fatorial superior a 0,80, indicando bom ajuste fatorial dos itens. Quanto a relação com variáveis externas, foram encontradas correlações de magnitudes moderadas e fortes entre o K-DOCS e o BFI-I, apenas o fator científico não apresentou correlações significativas com os domínios do BFI-I. Conclui-se que os resultados encontrados sugerem a adequação do instrumento e que, novos estudos com o instrumentos se fazem pertinentes.

COVID-19: implicações e aplicações da Psicologia Positiva em tempos de pandemia

Resumo A pandemia causada pela dispersão da COVID-19 no mundo obrigou muitos países a adotarem o isolamento social como medida de contenção do vírus. Pesquisas prévias indicam que pessoas submetidas ao isolamento social desenvolvem sintomas psicológicos variados, principalmente relacionados ao estresse, ansiedade e depressão, decorrentes da privação social e do confinamento. Este artigo objetiva apresentar pesquisas produzidas pela Psicologia Positiva e indicar como esses achados podem subsidiar intervenções para a promoção de saúde mental e bem-estar durante o isolamento social. Dentre os construtos descritos, destacam-se pesquisas sobre autocompaixão, resiliência, criatividade, otimismo, esperança, bem-estar subjetivo e práticas de meditação mindfulness para lidar com os efeitos adversos do isolamento. Considerações e implicações dessas práticas são discutidas em detalhes.