The Structure of Creative Thinking: Visual and Verbal Areas

The main purpose of this study was to study the structure of creative thinking of students in visual and verbal areas. The Torrance Test of Creative Thinking Figural and Verbal forms were used. The participants were Turkish elementary school 7th grade students (M = 13 years, range = 12–14 years). The findings indicated that the relationship between visual and verbal areas of creative thinking of students were statistically significant and meaningful. Additionally, gender differences were statistically significant and meaningful. The results indicate that the structure of creative thinking of students is holistic in early puberty age, at least in terms of visual and verbal areas of creative thinking. However, the holistic structure of students’ creative thinking has flexible character regarding to low (r = .25) level of relationship between visual and verbal areas. This result suggests that the visual and verbal materials can be used with presentation and narrative techniques in balanced education activities for the development of students’ creative thinking effectively.     

Creative Self-Efficacy: Correlates in Middle and Secondary Students

ABSTRACT: This study examined correlates of creative self-efficacy (i.e., self-judgments of creative ability) in middle and secondary students (N = 1,322). Results indicate that students' mastery- and performance-approach beliefs and teacher feedback on creative ability were positively related to students' creative self-efficacy. Creative self-efficacy was also linked to student reports of their teachers not listening to them and sometimes feeling that their teachers had given up on them. Students with higher levels of creative self-efficacy were significantly more likely to hold more positive beliefs about their academic abilities in all subject areas and were significantly more likely to indicate that they planned to attend college than students with lower levels of creative self-efficacy. Finally, students with higher levels of creative self-efficacy were significantly more likely to report higher levels of participation in after-school academics and after- school group activities. Implications for creativity research and practice are discussed.     

正常与多动儿童的创造力、学习适应性比较研究

本研究比较ADHD儿童和正常儿童在创造性思维测验、学习适应性测验以及教师对其创造力评价上的差异。结果表明：(1)ADHD儿童和正常儿童在数字和图形创造性思维测验上的成绩没有显著的差异。表明ADHD和创造力是彼此独立的两个特质;(2)ADHD儿童在学习态度、学校环境(主要是师生关系和同伴关系)、独立性和毅力等维度上明显偏低;(3)不同学科教师对于ADHD儿童和正常儿童在创造力水平高低的评价上没有显著性差异;(4)对于正常儿童。不同学科教师对其创造力的评价与儿童在创造力测验上的得分呈显著性相关;对于ADHD儿童则没有显著性相关。     

Not Only Jumps,Slumps, but also Mini Plateau. Creative Potential Assessed by the Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production. A Cross-Sectional Study of Polish Students Aged from 7 to 18

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the developmental trajectory of creative potentials of Polish students. A total of 1,522 Polish students aged between 7 and 18 from lower and upper primary school, middle school, and high school participated in the study. Creative potential was measured by means of the Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production. The findings showed that older students achieved higher scores than the younger ones, drops in mean scores among students aged 13 and 16 were noted, and levelling of scores was found among students aged from 10 to 13, with a slight drop at the age of 13. Moreover, a phenomenon was discovered which was described as a mini plateau, i.e., an emergence of similar mean scores in 2 consecutive age groups. Possible explanations of the results are discussed, including interpretations in the context of the CMC and educational and environmental conditions which act as inhibitors or stimulators of the development of creative abilities.     

父母自主支持、心理控制与初中生创意自我效能的关系:学业情绪的中介作用

为了探索父母自主支持、心理控制与初中生创意自我效能的关系,以及学业情绪的中介作用,采用整群抽样法,使用父母自主支持问卷、父母心理控制问卷、学生创意自我效能量表和青少年学业情绪问卷,对512名初中生进行调查。结果表明：（1）初中生低唤醒的学业情绪——放松和厌倦在父母自主支持和创意自我效能之间的中介作用显著;初中生高唤醒的学业情绪——高兴和焦虑在父母自主支持和创意自我效能之间的中介作用不显著;（2）四种学业情绪（高兴、放松、焦虑和厌倦）在父母心理控制和初中生创意自我效能之间的中介作用不显著。研究结果说明充分的父母自主支持能增加初中生的积极学业情绪,进而提升其创意自我效能。     

Creativity in the Age of Technology: Measuring the Digital Creativity of Millennials

Digital technology and its many uses form an emerging domain of creative expression for adolescents and young adults. To date, measures of self-reported creative behavior cover more traditional forms of creativity, including visual art, music, or writing, but do not include creativity in the digital domain. This article introduces a new measure, the Creative Behavior Questionnaire: Digital (CBQD), which assesses self-reported creative behavior in the digital domain. High school students (N = 230) completed the CBQD, as well as several other measures of creativity and personality. Factor analysis revealed 3 factors: digital creativity achievement, school-based everyday creativity, and self-expressive digital creativity. Factor-based scales showed expected correlations with other creativity measures, as well as Big-Five personality traits and Unconventionality, supporting construct validity. Results indicate that the CBQD can be used as an independent or a supplemental measure of creative behavior.     

Creative Personality and Anticreative Environment for High School Dropouts

The study examined the possible roles that creativity plays in students dropping out of high school. It used data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study (NELS: 88), the Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS: 2002), and 87 high school students from a low income area in southeastern Michigan. NELS and ELS questions related to creative personality and anticreative school environment were selected and asked of students. The students’ responses were compared to their scores on measures of creativity (Runco Ideational Behavior Scale, Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, & Scales for Rating the Behavioral Characteristics of Superior Students). The NELS respondents who showed creative personality were identified and examined whether their creativity related to dropping out. The results of logistic regression analyses indicated that the questions selected from NELS and ELS that showed anticreative school environment have a negative correlation with the scores on the creativity measures, which affect students’ dropping out. An understanding of these students and their behavior will help promote creative students’ academic and lifelong success through appropriate classroom restructuring.     

Psychometric Evaluation of the Italian Adaptation of the Test of Inferential and Creative Thinking

This article describes the psychometric properties of the Italian adaptation of the Analyse des Schlussfolgernden und Kreativen Denkens (ASK; Test of Inferential and Creative Thinking) for measuring inferential and creative thinking. The study aimed to (a) supply evidence for the factorial structure of the instrument, (b) describe its reliability in terms of internal consistency, and (c) explore its convergent and discriminant validity. The examinees were 284 high school students and adult graduates. Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to examine the dimensional structure. The 2-factor model provided an acceptable fit for the empirical data. As expected, stronger correlations were found among the subscales within the same construct domains compared to correlations among the subscales from the different construct domains. The psychometric qualities of the ASK appeared fairly good, thereby suggesting that it might be helpful in several application fields, including academic and professional guidance, human resource selections, and job placement.     

A Comparative Study of Creative Thinking of American And Japanese College Students

Cross-cultural differences in creative thinking were assessed for 51 American and 54 Japanese college students. The American college students showed statistically significantly higher scores on the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) figural test than the Japanese college students. No gender differences were found in either culture. Performance on the TTCT did not correlate with the performance on broad academic aptitude/achievement measures for either culture.     

不同学业成就中学生创造性思维的差异研究

本研究采用创造力量表对990名不同学业成就中学生的创造性思维进行研究,结果发现:(1)高学业成就组中学生的创造性思维、发散思维和聚合思维显著高于低学业成就组.(2)高低学业成就组中学生创造性思维、发散思维和聚合思维表现出年级差异性.(3)高低学业成就组中学生的创造性思维都随着年级发展而上升,但是两组的高峰期却出现差异,高学业成就组创造力高峰出现在初二和高二,而低学业成就组出现在高一.(4)发散思维的发展趋势上,高学业成就组呈现出曲折上升的趋势,而低学业成就组整体的发展趋势平稳.(5)高低学业成就组中学生聚合思维的发展趋势相似,都呈现出在初中阶段上升到高中阶段趋于稳定,并且在高中阶段两组的水平接近.     

关于假设-验证和范畴化认知方式与学业不良的相关研究

该研究采用自行设计的能力问卷量表,结合教师问卷、个案访谈和调查等方法对80名小学四年级学生、94名初中一年级学生、85名高中一年级学生,共259名被试进行了假设一验证和范畴化认知方式与学业不良关系的研究。结果表明：各学习年限段学业不良学生在这两方面的得分均低于学业优秀者,且差异显著;各学习年限段学业不良学生间在这两方面的得分差异显著,呈随年龄增长而增长的趋势。     

Short Term Intervention Model for Enhancing Divergent Thinking among School Aged Children

Creative ability can be developed and improved through intervention and training. This study presents a unique and innovative intervention program for enhancing creative thinking among children, focusing on divergent thinking skills. The program was designed as a short-term (10 weeks) training and conducted with 150 school students ranging in age from 9 to 13 years. The training included in a series of assignments, inspired by theoretical and practical concepts of mindfulness, theory of mind, and perspective taking. Divergent thinking was measured by fluency and uniqueness scores according to Tel Aviv Creativity Test (TACT). Results showed that children who participated in the program scored significantly higher on the divergent thinking tests after the intervention took place and that they showed higher creative achievements compared to children in the control groups.     

The Relationship Between Creativity and Behavior Problems Among Underachieving Elementary and High School Students

Understanding the role creative potential may play in the underachievement of some students could help schools and parents understand underachievers. This study examined whether there is a relationship between creativity and behavior problems among underachievers. Forty-one elementary and 89 high school students and 4 teachers in Korea participated in this study. The principal study involved comparing all of the students' scores on the 3 measures of creative potential (Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking-Figural [TTCT], Runco Ideational Behavior Scale [RIBS], and Scales for Rating the Behavioral Characteristics of Superior Students-Revised Edition [SRBCSS-R]), with their scores on a measure of behavior problems reported by their teachers. The results indicated that, among underachievers, there is a relationship between behavioral problems and students' scores on the 3 measures of creative potential. An understanding of these students and their behavior will help us promote creative students' academic and lifelong success in classrooms.     

中小学生创造性倾向、智力及学业成绩的相关研究

本研究采用威廉斯创造性倾向量表和瑞文标准推理测验,结合中小学生语文、数学成绩,对524名中小学生进行创造性倾向、智力和学业成绩的相关研究.研究发现:(1)中小学生创造性倾向从小学到初中都处于发展阶段,高中以后基本趋于稳定,中小学生的智力一直处于发展增长趋势;(2)小学生的语文、数学成绩与创造性倾向总分有显著相关,初中生的数学成绩与创造性倾向总分以及四项行为特质都有显著相关,小学、初中和高中学生的语文、数学成绩与智力有显著相关;(3)小学中、低分段语文成绩和低分段数学成绩与其创造性倾向有显著相关,初中学生的语文成绩只有高分段与创造性倾向有显著相关,小学和高中语、数成绩三个分段学生的学业成绩跟智力显著相关.     

Perceived organizational structure for teacher liking: the role of peers’ perceptions of teacher liking in teacher–student relationship quality,motivation, and achievement

Previous research has identified the role of perceived peer hierarchies, or organizational structures, in affecting students’ adjustment to school (Lease et al. 2003, Journal of Early Adolescence, 23, 194–217). The purpose of this study was to examine whether middle school classrooms can be described in terms of the perceived status individual students hold for who will and will not be ‘liked’ by the teacher. Specifically we examined: (1) Do students share a mutually agreed on representation, a perceived organizational structure, for describing relative status with their teacher? (2) Are teachers perceived as systematically favoring girls or boys? (3) Are peers’ perceptions of teacher liking associated with individual students’ social and academic motivation and relationship quality with teachers? (4) Are students identified by peers as ‘not liked’ at risk for long-term teacher rejection and underachievement? And, (5) What are the underlying criteria students use to judge teacher likeability? Data for this study were drawn from peer ratings from 516 (262 boys, 254 girls) middle school students in 20 classrooms. Findings indicate multidimensional scaling techniques can be used to map the ‘teacher-liking space,’ accounting for  > 90% of the variability in peers’ ratings of teacher likeability. Additionally, findings indicate perceived status in the teacher-liking space has consequences for students’ achievement and teacher relationship quality.     

Engaging contexts: Drawing the link between student and teacher experiences of the hidden curriculum

This article examines how academic disengagement (being off task, unenthusiastic and uncurious about learning) is facilitated by the hidden curriculum (the values, norms and beliefs transmitted via the structure of schooling), and mediated by race, ethnicity and gender for students in a working class elementary school. Additionally, we contextualize how a teacher was challenged by the hidden curriculum in her attempt to make her classroom environment engaging for all students. Participants included a young white female teacher and 21 second grade, low‐income students, of whom approximately 50% were white and 50% were Black or Latino/a. A teacher interview and fieldnotes covering 8 hours a week over 3 months comprised the data. Results indicated that students were required to show their engagement in particular ways that related to control and conformity. When they did not, they were reprimanded, which led to academic disengagement and the transmission of the hidden curriculum's message that school was not a place for them. This process was especially salient for Black and Latino boys, which indicated that the hidden curriculum was institutionalized. Results also showed that the hidden curriculum was a structural limitation for the teacher, as she was often thwarted in her attempts to create an academically engaging learning environment. Implications include strategies for school change and reform, including making the hidden curriculum more visible. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Creative Personality: A Synthesis and Development of the Creative Person Profile

Several constructs from the research literature on the creative personality were reoperationalized to gain further understanding of the structure of the creative personality and to develop a broad measure of relevant traits (CPP—the Creative Person Profile). From an initial pool of 38 creativity relevant personality constructs, 7 factors were identified and labeled (emotional instability, ambition, associative orientation, motivation, need for originality, agreeableness, and flexibility) in a sample of 481 participants with a mean age of 31.6 years. In a subsample, there were theoretically meaningful correlations between the 5-factor model of personality and 5 of the CPP factors. Moreover, most of the 7 components correlated with at least 1 ability test or self-report criterion of creativity (creative problem solving, remote associates test, ideational fluency, items from a creative activities checklist). Finally, in a discriminant validity study, scores on the 7 factors clearly differentiated between a group of professional artists (n = 69) and the remainder of the sample, and between a group of marketing students (n = 40) and the remainder of the sample.     

Creativity versus conscientiousness: which is a better predictor of student performance?

This paper examines the extent to which the incremental validity of creative thinking (over and above personality) in the prediction of academic performance may be a function of assessment methods. British university students (N = 307) completed the Alternate Uses Test and Big Five personality inventory at the beginning of the first academic year. Students' academic performance was assessed throughout a 4‐year period via written exams, continuous assessment (tutored seminars) and a supervised dissertation in the final year. Creative thinking was more related to final dissertation marks than to exam and continuous assessment performance (which were associated with Conscientiousness, rather than creative thinking). A follow‐up questionnaire on preferences for different assessment methods revealed that creative thinking was positively related to preference for viva voce (oral) exams, group projects and final dissertation, but negatively associated with preferences for multiple‐choice and essay‐type exams, as well as continuous assessment. Implications are discussed with regard to educational settings, in particular assessment methods. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conscious Motivations of Adolescent Visual Artists and Creative Writers: Similarities and Differences

This exploratory study was designed to expand the field’s understanding of talented adolescent visual artists and creative writers and their conscious motivations for engaging in these creative activities. Accordingly, 233 talented high school visual arts (n = 151) and creative writing (n = 82) students were asked to rate the degree to which they believed their creative activities were motivated by each of a wide range of possible motivations. The students in both fields reported being very strongly motivated by the opportunities their activities provided them to use their imaginations, feel free, sense that they were being their “true” selves, regulate their emotions, capture moments in time, deepen their self-understanding, express themselves, improve their skills, and enhance their self-esteem. Some of these motivations correspond closely to those highlighted by theories of intrinsic motivation, competence motivation, and self-actualization, several are similar to those which have been reported by professional artists and writers, and some suggest that the students may have derived important psychological benefits from their creative activities. Theoretically plausible differences between the motivational profiles of the visual and creative writing students were identified and discussed.