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CHAPTER 10
Creativity and Human Relations
Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter, you will be able to:
1. Explain the importance of creativity.
3. Discuss the relationship between perception and creativity.
5. Describe creativity in the workplace.
7. Give examples of ways to solve problems creatively.
Key Terms
Aslan phenomenon: A circumstance that exists when people make rules, then follow
them even after the situations to which they originally applied no longer exist.
Brainstorming: A type of spontaneous group discussion to help find multiple solutions
for problems.
Collective habits of thought: Ways of thinking that occur when groups have their own
beliefs about what should be done and how it should be done.
Either/or fallacy: When you see only one of two extremes as a possible solution, while
ignoring the endless number of creative choices that might exist between the extremes.
Extrinsic motivator: Those motivators that come from outside sources, such as money
and fame.
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Intrinsic motivators: Factors that motivate a person from within, such as the joy and
excitement of the discovery process.
Intuition: Direct perception or insight.
Nine-dot puzzle: A puzzle that is used to show people’s respect for rules that don’t exist.
Participants are asked to connect nine dots using only four straight lines, without lifting
the pen off the paper. Most fail because they feel the need to stay “inside the box” formed
by the nine dots.
Second right answer: Refers to a method of decision making in which people get rid of
the stumbling block that prevents them from looking for more than one solution.
Ten “mental locks”: Rules or beliefs that keep people from being as creative as they
otherwise could be.
Lecture Outline
I. The Creativity Connection
Creativity—the ability to produce ideas, or solutions to problems, that are unique,
appropriate, and valuable—has much to do with one’s self-esteem and, in turn, one’s
relationships with other people. Creativity is the ability to come up with original and
effective solutions. Business factors such as the number and quality of products created
are affected strongly by the creativity of the people in an organization.
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The importance of creativity cannot be overstated. International competition is forcing
American businesses to take a new look at how American creativity compares with that
of other nations. U.S. companies are emphasizing creativity to an extent that hasn’t been
II. What Is Creativity?
Research has shown that creativity has little to do with personality type, with the
materials used in creating, with the products produced, or with a particular environment.
A. “Flow” and Creativity in Our Everyday Lives
Psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi describes creative people as having flexibility
and fluency in ideas, with the ability to know a good idea from a bad one. Creative
ideas can be used to solve everyday problems (sometimes called “little c” creativity),
Optimal experiences are intensely enjoyable and definitely stimulate one’s creativity,
but they are also very demanding. After examining many thousands of people’s
descriptions of flow, Csikszentmihalyi has found eight components that are usually
found in a flow experience:
• The activity requires a specific skill and is challenging.
• Attention is completely absorbed by the activity.
• The activity has clear goals.
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Csikszentmihalyi believes that everyone can incorporate optimal experiences into their
everyday lives and in doing so, become more creative. He believes that one key to
personal happiness and life satisfaction is for people to take responsibility and find out
on their own what makes them feel flow in their work.
III. Perception and Creativity
Most of the researchers who have studied creativity agree that creative people are
somehow able to get away from the ordinary, everyday way of seeing things. In his book
The Act of Creation, Arthur Koestler describes all of the major scientific inventions of the
past and shows the creative processes that produced them. Koestler says that habit is the
stumbling block to creativity.
Groups of people (such as companies, committees, and universities) are often unable to
move beyond habits of thinking. Groups often have their own beliefs about what should
be done and how it should be done; these are called collective habits of thought.
Individuals and groups need to get past the old, established ways of seeing things if they
are going to increase their creativity.
Perception is the way in which a person views the world. Being able to look at the world
from different angles makes a great difference in how creatively one deals with the world
and solves problems.
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Maslow remarked that that by remaining in and being unduly influenced by conventional
society, any thinking is likely to become conventional and noncreative. The lesson for
businesspeople is to learn to look beyond the conventional business world for ideas.
Characteristics of creative people include:
• Expert knowledge—the process of becoming an expert in any field is a good
beginning point for creativity because it takes practice and hard work to become an
expert at anything.
• Openness to new experiences—creative people are more flexible than others; rather
than being closed-minded or inhibited, they are curious and questioning.
IV. Inside the Creative Process
The idea of the creative process—the way in which creativity helps you develop ideas
and solve problems—has been around since the 1920s. At that time, Graham Wallas
described four basic steps or stages in this process.
A. Step One: Perception and Preparation
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Perception is the beginning point for creativity. The first part of dealing with a
creativity issue is making sure one perceives the problem accurately. Perception is
B. Step Two: Incubation
The process of incubation might take minutes, hours, months, or even years. In some
creative processes, this step will involve research and experimentation. Depending on
the nature of the creation, it could also involve simply turning the ideas over and over
in one’s mind until the breakthrough finally takes place.
C. Step Three: Inspiration
This third step can also be called “illumination.” It is the moment when the incubation
and all of the struggling finally come together, transforming the developing creativity
into a solid, real concept. This magic moment doesn’t always happen on anyone’s
D. Step Four: Verification
This is the step where the newly created concept, product, or service is proven to be
worthwhile. Now one can transform the new solution to the problem into useful
action, and verify the solution.
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V. Creativity in the Workplace
A. Managing Creativity
Most workplaces ignore or even discourage creativity. Managers are often notorious
creativity killers. Many managers have a vocabulary of killer phrases that are designed
to stop creative thoughts before they start. Managers need to realize that employees’
ideas are often better than those coming out of boardrooms, and that discouraging
creative ideas damages workplace morale.
An effective manager encourages creativity among employees by creating a climate of
deferred judgment. The manager may use a formal method for receiving suggestions,
B. Fostering creativity
For most people, creativity has a social aspect. Simply being around other creative
people, or engaging in fun things can bring about new ideas and boost creative output.
Many of today’s most successful companies, especially those in the technology and
VI. Creative Methods for Groups
In today’s workplace, creative problem solving is increasingly done in group settings.
Whatever an individual can produce creatively, a group may be able to produce more
effectively. Groups can produce more ideas in shorter time periods if the creative process
is structured carefully.
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A. Brainstorming
In 1934 a sales manager named Alex Osborne devised a method of sparking creativity
in a group situation. He called his idea brainstorming, which is a type of spontaneous
group discussion to help find multiple solutions for problems. Brainstorming is
conducted in two sessions.
First Session
Rules for the first session of brainstorming are as following:
• Participants speak in phrases.
• Hitchhiking on others’ ideas is encouraged.
• Criticism is forbidden.
Second session
Rules for the second session of brainstorming are as following
• Return to rational mode.
• All ideas are analyzed and prioritized.
• Idea duplications are eliminated.
B. The Nominal Group Method
The nominal group method of group creativity is designed to provide a structure that
encourages individual creativity within a group framework. The reason this method is
called nominal is because the members are actually a group in name only. The group
is basically a tool for voting. Usually, nominal grouping involves six steps:
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• Each employee puts his or her ideas down in writing.
• The leader lists all of the ideas up on a board or chart where everyone can see
them.
VII. Creative Problem Solving
Creativity is found to flourish with intrinsic motivation. Dr. Teresa Amabile finds that
intrinsic motivation is more powerful than extrinsic motivation in encouraging creativity.
When companies do reward creativity, they often focus more on extrinsic than on
intrinsic rewards. W. Edwards Deming explains that this does not work because intrinsic
rewards, which can result from allowing creativity, drive employee self-esteem.
Review Questions
1. Is creativity the same as intelligence? How are they related? In what ways are they
different?
Answer: Students’ answers will vary. Many people make the mistake of linking
creativity with traditional intelligence. Actually, intuition, which is direct perception
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Copyright © 2014 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of
McGraw-Hill Education.
However, they were not more likely to be more creative than other people. Creative
people are usually average or above average in intelligence, but being a genius (in
the way that traditional intelligence is measured) does not automatically make
someone creative.
2. Explain the differences among the four steps of the creative process described by
Wallas, using examples from your own experience of a problem you have solved.
Answer: Students’ answers will vary. Graham Wallas described four basic steps or
stages in the creative process. They are as follows:
3. Why do workplaces so often lack creativity? What steps can managers take to
increase the quality and quantity of their employees’ creative output?
Answer: Students’ answers will vary. Most workplaces ignore or even discourage
creativity. Few external rewards are offered for it in most companies. Little time is
allowed for it, although creativity can increase internal rewards. Managers need to
Chapter 10 – Creativity and Human Relations
4. What does it mean to be in the open mode? What does this feel like? How can the
open mode allow for greater creativity?
5. Explain the difference between brainstorming and the nominal group method. How
can both help produce more creative group results?
Answer: Brainstorming and nominal group methods are creative problem solving
techniques. Brainstorming is a type of spontaneous group discussion to help find
multiple solutions for problems. The nominal group method of group creativity is
6. How many right answers are there to any one problem? What is meant by the second
right answer? How many right answers should you look for in solving a problem
before deciding on a solution to implement?
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7. How does the phrase playing the violin relate to an increase in creativity? What skill
or talent would you like to explore? How would a new skill increase your creativity?
8. Which better promotes creativity: positive reinforcement or intrinsic motivation?
Explain.
Answer: Students’ answers will vary. Although positive reinforcement can increase
people’s willingness to try out new ideas and to be creative, creativity is more likely
Critical Thinking Questions
9. Do you think creative geniuses are more likely born or made? Do you think you
could become more creative if you were to work at it?
Answer: This question provides opportunity for discussion. Students’ answers will
vary. Creativity is defined by the ability to produce ideas or solutions to problems
People can learn the following basic steps to increase their creativity.
• Get into the open mode.
Chapter 10 – Creativity and Human Relations
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Copyright © 2014 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of
McGraw-Hill Education.
• Learn to play the violin.
• Turn your ideas into action.
• Don’t be afraid to break some rules.
• Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
• Spend time with creative people.
• Capture creative ideas when they happen.
10. Which type of talent do you think has greater worth to society, creativity or academic
intelligence? Why? Do you think one of these is more important than the other?
Answer: This question provides opportunity for discussion. Students’ answers will
vary. Traditional intelligence emphasizes reasoning ability and verbal
11. Some of our nation’s most creative minds, including Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Frank
Lloyd Wright, Buckminster Fuller, James Cameron, and Mark Zuckerberg, did not
finish college. Do you believe this ultimately hurt, or helped, their creative
endeavors? Explain your response, applying strategies for creativity discussed in this
chapter into your response.
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True creativity requires “divergent thinking,” or what is referred to in more common
Case Studies
Case Study 10.1: Inland’s Widget Woes
Frustrated at the situation of having produced 100,000 widgets instead of the required
10,000, Garth Peters, production manager at Inland Widgets, runs through numerous
ideas to market the remaining 90,000 widgets. This overproduction problem has arisen
due to a typing error. When Garth requests his assistant manager, Lynn Sen, to suggest
creative solutions, she reveals that she had hoped that Garth would have come up with
some.
Questions
1. Imagine you are Garth or Lynn, and come up with 20 new possible uses for these
widgets.
Suggested Answer: This question will create a lively discussion in the class.
2. How should Garth and Lynn use the talents of their 51 employees in solving this
problem?
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Suggested Answer: This question will create a lively discussion in the class.
3. Explain how Garth and Lynn could use first the nominal group method, and then
brainstorming, to come up with ideas for marketing the widgets. Which would work
better in this case? Why?
Suggested Answer: This question will create a lively discussion in the class.
Students’ answers will vary. Garth and Lynn could use the nominal group method
Case Study 10.2: Smarts, Luck, or Skill?
Carlos Mendez felt that he was not smart enough to write regular creative pieces week
after week. Debi Desmond tries to pep him up as he was feeling lost in his efforts to
generate a city planning proposal. Debi feels that to be creative one need not be smart,
but has to be lucky. Vice president Susan McKee disagrees with their opinions on
creativity and tells them that creativity is not luck but a skill that can be practiced and
improved on, and does not require a genius.
Questions
1. Who’s right about the definition of creativity: Carlos, Debi, or Susan? Is there more
than one right answer to this question?
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Suggested Answer: This question will create a lively discussion in the class.
2. Suppose you are Susan. What kinds of information would you bring to a meeting on
creativity?
3. Do you see a link between Carlos’s creativity slump and his self-esteem? Explain.