When Breaking the Rules Relates to Creativity: The Role of Creative Problem-Solving Demands and Organizational Constraints

Drawing on theoretical views of creative deviance, the present study hypothesized that employees with a tendency to break rules are more creative at their jobs (Hypothesis 1). Furthermore, we expected that this is particularly the case when employees face high problem-solving demands (i.e., they are expected to be creative) but at the same time they face high organizational constraints (e.g., they are not given the resources they need in order to be creative; Hypothesis 2). To test these expectations, we conducted a cross-sectional survey study (Study 1) and a daily diary survey study (Study 2) among employees from different occupational groups. Study 1 provided evidence that employee rule-breaking is related to other-rated employee creativity. Study 2 replicated this finding with a day-level measure of self-rated employee creativity. Furthermore, multilevel regression analyses revealed that the link is stronger when day-level problem-solving demands and organizational constraints are both high. Our findings contribute to the literature by providing empirical support to hardly examined propositions, namely, that non-compliant behaviors (i.e., rule-breaking) and obstacles (i.e., organizational constraints) may, in fact, boost creativity. Finally, suggestions for practice are made, recognizing the challenges posed to management in regulating employee rule-breaking.     

Cross-cultural effects of parent warmth and control on aggression and rule-breaking from ages 8 to 13

We investigated whether bidirectional associations between parental warmth and behavioral control and child aggression and rule-breaking behavior emerged in 12 cultural groups. Study participants included 1,298 children (M = 8.29 years, standard deviation [SD] = 0.66, 51% girls) from Shanghai, China (n = 121); Medellín, Colombia (n = 108); Naples (n = 100) and Rome (n = 103), Italy; Zarqa, Jordan (n = 114); Kisumu, Kenya (n = 100); Manila, Philippines (n = 120); Trollhättan/Vänersborg, Sweden (n = 101); Chiang Mai, Thailand (n = 120); and Durham, NC, United States (n = 111 White, n = 103 Black, n = 97 Latino) followed over 5 years (i.e., ages 8–13). Warmth and control were measured using the Parental Acceptance-Rejection/Control Questionnaire, child aggression and rule-breaking were measured using the Achenbach System of Empirically-Based Assessment. Multiple-group structural equation modeling was conducted. Associations between parent warmth and subsequent rule-breaking behavior were found to be more common across ontogeny and demonstrate greater variability across different cultures than associations between warmth and subsequent aggressive behavior. In contrast, the evocative effects of child aggressive behavior on subsequent parent warmth and behavioral control were more common, especially before age 10, than those of rule-breaking behavior. Considering the type of externalizing behavior, developmental time point, and cultural context is essential to understanding how parenting and child behavior reciprocally affect one another.     

The association between aggressive and non-aggressive antisocial problems as measured with the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment: A study of 27,861 parent–adolescent dyads from 25 societies

Aggression (e.g., assaulting others, bullying, oppositionality; AGG) and non-aggressive rule-breaking (e.g., lying, stealing, vandalism; RB) appear to constitute meaningfully distinct dimensions of antisocial behavior. Despite these differences, it is equally clear that AGG and RB are moderately-to-strongly intercorrelated with one another. To date, however, we have little insight into the sampling and methodologic characteristics that might moderate the association between AGG and RB. The current study sought to evaluate several such moderators (i.e., age, sex, informant, and society) in a sample of 27,861 parent–adolescent dyads from 25 societies. AGG and RB were assessed with the well-known Child Behavior Checklist and Youth Self-Report (Achenbach & Rescorla, 2001). Results revealed small effects of informant and adolescent sex, such that the association between AGG and RB was stronger for parents’ reports than for adolescents’ self-reports, and for boys than for girls. The association also varied by society. Unexpectedly, the specific operationalization of ‘aggression’ emerged as a particularly strong moderator, such that the association was stronger for a general measure of AGG than for a more focused measure of physical aggression per se. Such findings inform our understanding of similarities and differences between aggressive and non-aggressive antisocial problems.