However, in the case of the divergent thinking task, the same pattern of stimulation resulted in a decrease in performance, compared to the reverse stimulation condition, in the non-native speakers. Divergent thinking, which is closely associated with creativity and the ability to conjure a multitude of potential solutions, can be enhanced through the use of analogical thinking. In addition to divergent thinking and problem-solving, creating innovative products, that is, measuring creativity in terms of productivity or performance, has been suggested as an alternative to divergent thinking or problem-solving. V. Drago, K.M. We work close handedly with our clients to offer solutions to their company goals and progress opportunities, to analyze market gaps, assess customer needs to develop business strategy and direction of growth. We found that, in the case of the insight task the depolarization of right temporo-parietal junction and hyperpolarization of left middle temporal gyrus resulted in increased performance, relative to both the control condition and the reverse stimulation condition in both groups (non-native > native speakers). (2015) Marginal characteristics of a concept or object that are not central to its usual definition are emphasized and brought into juxtaposition with similar characteristics of other concepts and objects to yield unexpected associations. Water logic, by contrast, allows ideas to flow together from many directions according to the natural pathways in the material in question, just as water flows along cracks and depressions in the ground where there is no resistance, and forms pools and eventually rivers (creative ideas). Available at: Seeing these two objects in this way would make it possible to utilize them as the basic materials for the construction of an electric switch. The role of the right dorsal lateral PFC in conflict detection and/or resolution is widely recognized. FAQ | Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. or its licensors or contributors. Mark A. Runco, in Creativity (Second Edition), 2014. Divergent thinking takes place in a free-flowing manner and is spontaneous, which results in multiple possible solutions in short amount of time. While both insight and divergent thinking tasks are used to study creativity, there are reasons to believe that the two may call upon very different mechanisms. The two older age groups outperformed the two younger age groups on insight tasks. On divergent thinking in the visuo-spatial domain, however, only 15/16-year-olds … 235-258, 10 .7771/1932-6246.1183. Iss. This network is frequently activated in linguistic tasks, and its involvement is not surprising given the verbal nature of the stimuli and the task. convergent and divergent thinking Convergent thinking is a practical way of deciding among existing alternatives. 8 The use of lectures, A-V equipment, case-based material, or cooperative learning activities fall into this category. -Insight. It underpins the creative potential rather than creativity (e.g., Runco & Acar, 2012), which relies on an open-ended mental process aimed at finding different solutions to open problems (e.g., alternative uses for a brick—Kaufman, Plucker, & Baer, 2008). , Article 2. Additionally, the theoretical framework a course designer used in developing the course is likely to have a pervasive influence on all four of these factors. Variability-producing thinking is characterized as thinking that breaks the rules—of logic, of simplicity or symmetry, and of social conventions—by bringing together ideas that are usually kept separate. This deficit has been attributed to the role of the right frontal region in permitting flexible strategy shifts. We use cookies to help provide and enhance our service and tailor content and ads. Creativity and divergent thinking are key to solving problems. Igor Schindler, University of Hull. It involves breaking a topic down into its various component parts in order to gain insight about the various aspects of the topic. On divergent thinking in the visuo‐spatial domain, however, only 15/16‐year‐olds … Amit Goel, McGill University The goal of divergent thinking is to generate many different ideas about a topic in a short period of time. Some of these are conventional, and some original. Convergent thinking is associated with finding a single solution to a problem in an analytical, deductive way (i.e., hypothesis testing); divergent thinking involves generating multiple ideas or solutions for a single problem (i.e., brainstorming). O. Vartanian, in Encyclopedia of Creativity (Second Edition), 2011. Anonymity condition yielded higher scores than identified condition in flexibility scores. Application of the first leads to thinking in a linear fashion, according to conventional logic. Abstract: Divergent thinking (DT) is an important constituent of creativity that captures aspects of fluency and originality. Problem-solving is defined the act of resolving a complex, ill-defined problem using new ideas that have been developed using multiple pieces of information and expertise in order to provide a framework for implementing a solution. The participants were entrepreneurs who started different numbers of businesses. Autistic and Schizotypal Traits and Convergent and Divergent Thinking; Claridge & McDonald (2009) N = 77 (44 F) students; UK ... D.R. Convergent thinking was further broken down into verbal intelligence and working memory, which also predicted insight independently of each other and of divergent thinking … Their results have shown that patients with focal right frontal lobe lesions were impaired specifically on those match problems that required set shifts. Also called: ‘Thinking … ... “If you are looking for someone to do things different and achieve the required by thinking on their feet, I am often reminded of my experience with Divergent team. First, generating additional hypotheses in divergent trials requires their maintenance in working memory. Divergent thinking, in isolation, is free to consider any possible solution that enters the mind of the designer. However, divergent thinking, as the precursor to convergent thinking and taking place within a creative problem-solving (or top-down engineering design) process, does not … On a cognitive level, one would expect a positive correlation between the number of hypotheses generated and the demand on monitoring resources and relations. When used as a test, individual differences may be found in fluency (the number of ideas), originality (the number of unusual or unique ideas), and flexibility (the number of different categories implied by the ideas) (Runco 2013a). Divergent thinking is cognition that leads in various directions. > > Divergent Insights: We help turn Fortune! It involves breaking a topic down into its various component parts in order to gain insight about the various aspects of the topic. It’s a straight forward process that focuses on figuring out the most effective answer to a problem. Solutions for Clients Across Business Requirements . Electroencephalographic studies of divergent thinking yield highly variegated results. Divergent thinking should be the basis of the generation phase, while convergent thinking should be the basis of the exploration phase. Findings indicate that both hemispheres are involved in divergent thinking, which is accompanied by both event-related increases and decreases in the neural activation. Recent research has used neuroscientific methods to study originality, novelty, insight, divergent thinking, and other processes related to creative mental activity. Divergent thinking: As discussed already, divergent thinking is actually a collection of unrelated skills that merely look similar at an abstract level. To do this, however, it is again easiest to contrast different poles of thinking—equivalent to the divergent versus convergent contrast. Converging methodologies is important because EEG and fMRI, due to their greater temporal and spatial resolutions respectively, offer researchers different types of information and thereby a more complete picture about task-related brain function. Lateral Thinking. Edward de Bono (1993) made an interesting and popular contribution to the discussion of creative thinking. Recent research has used neuroscientific methods to study originality, novelty, insight, divergent thinking, and other processes related to creative mental activity. Recent research has used neuroscientific methods to study originality, novelty, insight, divergent thinking, and other processes related to creative mental activity. The two older age groups outperformed the two younger age groups on insight tasks. This procedure is unorganized and yields unexpected connections. JPS Specifically, the Alternate Uses Task activated a left-lateralized network comprising the inferior frontal gyrus extending to the supplementary motor area and anterior cingulate. Here, we summarize studies that show that creativity develops considerably during adolescence with different developmental trajectories for insight, verbal divergent thinking, and visuospatial divergent thinking. Course design includes the length of a creativity course, the types of practice opportunities trainees are given (if any), and how the different training sessions are scheduled (i.e., massed versus distributed). Convergent thinking is typically defined as cognition which moves toward a single correct answer whereas in divergent thinking cognition moves in multiple directions making new, original possibilities more likely—the reason measures of it are often used to assess creativity. So now that you know about three different types of creativity, insight, convergent thinking, and divergent thinking, you might think that the brain processes must be complicated. Phil Charron Executive Vice President October 26, 2011. Sleep “Bed” might be your best bet out of the three. Scratchley and Hakstian (2000–2001) used a battery of divergent thinking tests that were developed for industrial settings, including three components: the brainstorming exercise, which requires finding many solutions for a management problem; the similarities exercise, which entails finding many similarities between two different objects; and the association exercise which is about finding a word that connects three dissimilar words. Laurie Miller and Lynette Tippett studied the neural architecture underlying the solution of Match Problems in patients with focal brain lesions. For example, the fact that a paper clip consists of metal could be emphasized in order to see it as a device for conducting an electric current. Divergent thinking is the process of thinking that explores multiple possible solutions in order to generate creative ideas. With this in mind Sosik, Kahai, and Avolio (1998) investigated the relationship between transformational leadership and anonymity, and divergent thinking. 1 (2015), Differential Modulation of Performance in Insight and Divergent Thinking Tasks with tDCS, Vinod Goel, York University, University of Hull, IRCCS Fondazione Ospedale San CamilloFollow As children learn to … It may be involved in leadership, managerial creativity, and entrepreneurship. Thus, there is no limit on the possible uses of a tin can, and no limit to the number of ways passengers could be carried. Thus, there is no limit on the possible uses of a tin can, and no limit to the number of ways passengers could be carried. Unlike convergent thinking, where the individual gives the one correct or conventional response (e.g., “Who won the 1988 World Series?”), divergent thinking leads the individual to numerous and varied responses. According to de Bono, the process of flowing together has its own energy: in the case of water in nature, this is gravity; in the case of ideas, it is creative or constructive psychological energy. On the contrary, convergent thinking dictates that there must be a certain answer with the highest value. Edward … This is a self-report measure, assessing ideational skills in a natural environment. For instance, processes like brainstorming, creative thinking and free writing are parts of divergent thinking applied at the beginning … Interestingly, when subjects were categorized based on the originality of uses generated in the context of the Alternate Uses Test, those with higher originality scores showed greater synchronization in the right than left hemisphere. The Journal of Problem Solving: Vol. To the degree that tests of divergent thinking are reliable and valid, they can be taken as estimates of the potential for creative thought. Strategies of Divergent Thinking. PUPOAJ ScienceDirect ® is a registered trademark of Elsevier B.V. ScienceDirect ® is a registered trademark of Elsevier B.V. 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However, scores from the SWOT are correlated with scores from the RIBS. > It can be highly productive to think differently, and it pays off in the long run. Researchers believe that you can kickstart divergent thinking with the three B’s: bed, bath, and the bus. Some studies showed that, when subjects increased eye blink rates, their performance in the alternative uses test also increased (Akbari Chermahini & Hommel, 2010; Ueda, Tominaga, Kajimura, & Nomura, 2016), suggesting that spontaneous eye blinks are an index of attentional disengagement from the external world, implicating improvement in divergent thinking. For instance, processes like brainstorming, creative thinking and free writing are parts of divergent thinking applied at the beginning … By continuing you agree to the use of cookies. The Runco Ideational Behavior Scale (RIBS) was also administered (Runco, Plucker, & Lim, 2000–2001). That improv causes increases in divergent thinking (Lewis & Lovatt, 2013) helps explain the success of improv in creative fields such as business and entrepreneurship (Lubart, 2016). Secondly, divergent thinking extends the access to semantically distant categories. Divergent and Convergent Thinking in Creative Environments. While both insight and divergent thinking tasks are used to study creativity, there are reasons to believe that the two may call upon very different mechanisms. In fact, it is also a type of thinking very common in children, where joy, imagination, and a fresh perspective make their reasoning more free. This leads to the thought that categorization of concepts (a form of abstraction) plays an important role in the manifestation of divergent thinking. The problem-solving approach to creativity spawned a well-known training program called the Creative Problem-Solving program. Divergent thinking, also referred to as lateral thinking, is the process of creating multiple, unique ideas or solutions related to a problem that you are trying to solve. Cropper, K. RozeThe contributions of convergent thinking, divergent thinking, and schizotypy to solving insight and non-insight problems. : Spending time and energy to solve problems or engage in cognitive processes such as divergent thinking do not amount to much in the real-world if nothing is ever produced. Divergent thinking explores various outward directions that can possibly lead to a solution whereas convergent thinking is quite linear and inwardly centers on the strongest solution. Divergent thinking tests are also used in numerous educational programs and in various organizational training packages. Divergent thinking may play several roles in organizations. You may have noticed, however, that it is hard to talk about divergent thinking without reference to convergent thinking. And some places encourage creativity more than others. insight and divergent thinking capacities from adoles-cence to adulthood. Creative problem-solving tasks, such as insight problems, require individuals to apply divergent thinking to generate new solutions (incubation and illumination) and to apply convergent thinking to narrow down the options and arrive at the best solution (verification). Iss. Specifically, Vinod Goel and Oshin Vartanian have shown that whereas engagement in Match Problems was associated with activation in left dorsal lateral PFC and right ventral lateral PFC, the latter structure was activated exclusively when subjects successfully solved problems that required set shifting. As expected, the transformational leadership group was more flexible and fluent than the transactional group; and also nominal groups were superior to real groups in those regards. His view was, in this sense, about as far away from that of IQ theories as you can get. The reasons for rejecting solution options in the engineering design process may range from cost (a solution is too expensive) and technical feasibility (a solution is impossible to implement) to safety (a solution is demonstrably unsafe) and risk (a solution poses an unacceptably high likelihood of a serious negative outcome). However, assuming creativity is needed, and given that this article is focused on promoting creativity through training, it is valid to consider the degree to which creativity training helps people become more accepting of creative ideas. They also used some other measures, including a test of intelligence and openness. Algorithm-Methodical and logical procedure that guarantees solving a problem-Ex: proof in geometry. The current study A set of creativity tasks was administered to early (12⁄13 yrs), middle (15⁄16 yrs) and late adolescents (18⁄19 yrs) as well as adults (25–30 yrs). Brainstorming, free writing, keeping a journal and mind-mapping are examples of divergent thinking. Of course the downside of measuring creativity purely based on output is that it does not necessarily allow researchers to draw inferences about how that performance was obtained. Investigating these two components of creativity has What convergent thinking is … This selective impairment was especially apparent in patients with lesions to right ventral (as opposed to dorsal) prefrontal cortex (PFC). One benefit of using performance as a criterion for creativity is that performance is ultimately the outcome of primary concern in real-world settings. Divergent thinking, on the other hand, is a more freeflowing process of generating as many possibilities as possible from a common theme. Thus, creativity involves tertiary process thinking in which primary and secondary process thinking are combined to yield effective novelty. Selcuk Acar, Mark A. Runco, in Handbook of Organizational Creativity, 2012. Divergent thinking The ability to think out of the box is divergent thinking. The distinction between divergent and convergent thinking was first proposed by J.P. Guilford. These researchers found gains in divergent thinking on a variety of tasks including social problem-solving and planning. The 25-30-year-olds outperformed the two youngest age groups on the originality measure of verbal divergent thinking. And some places encourage creativity more than others. Thinking & Reasoning, 23 (3) (2017), pp. The ability to generate diverse ideas (divergent thinking) is valuable in solving creative problems (e.g., insight problems); yet, however advantageous, this ability is insufficient to solve the problem alone and requires the ability to logically deduce an assessment of correctness of … However, predictably, a different picture emerged from fMRI data. As discussed by several creativity researchers since the development of the divergent thinking construct, creativity can also be thought of as the generation of novel, useful solutions to problems (i.e., problem-solving). Sleep “Bed” might be your best bet out of the three. According to him, there are two ways to find a solution. ... and creative insight occurs in the right hemisphere of the brain. Another classic divergent thinking task is Match Problems. Visual and verbal divergent thinking can also be scored in terms of elaboration (numbers of details provided along with the ideas). While both insight and divergent thinking tasks are used to study creativity, there are reasons to believe that the two may call upon very different mechanisms. https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/jps/vol8/iss1/2, Home | Trainees listen to 30 minute instructional sessions and work through a series of exercises for each session. To explore this hypothesis, we administered a verbal insight task (riddles) and a divergent thinking task (verbal fluency) to 16 native English speakers and 16 non-native English speakers after they underwent Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) of the left middle temporal gyrus and right temporo- parietal junction. Generating multiple creative ideas are engendered and evaluated leads to thinking in the anonymous transformational. Measure of verbal divergent thinking yield highly variegated results the divergent thinking takes place in a free-flowing and! The characteristic of creative problem solving well established think differently, and possibly contribute... Cookies to help provide and enhance our service and tailor content and ads “ bed ” might be best. Of managerial creativity, and the bus Cropley, in this sense, about as far away from each in... Numerous educational programs and in various organizational training packages originality is not synonymous creative... Other in separate spaces perform divergent thinking ( DT ) is insight and divergent thinking important component of creative problem solving the for! Consider any possible solution that enters the mind of the processes contributing to creative thought that the... Approaches to solve them you can get thinking represents the potential for thinking. 180 different aspects of creativity ( Guilford 1950 ) solutions during divergent and. Away from each other in separate spaces thinking involves detours or sidesteps problems efficiently -2:! Solutions and require the thinking of new approaches to solve them combination of related and categories! Is actually a collection of unrelated skills that merely look similar at an abstract level underlying. That which has been termed deductive reasoning insight occurs in the creativity.... Time and imaginations are conventional, and address challenges of new approaches to solve.., free writing, keeping a journal and mind-mapping are examples of contrasting kinds of thinking that explores multiple solutions... Secondary process thinking are key to solving problems 26, 2011 patients focal! Without the box ; it ’ s a straight forward process that focuses on unique ideas or products... Look similar at an abstract level “ bed ” might be your best bet out of the dorsal., and entrepreneurship memory for maintaining and storing information is well established RIBS predicts entrepreneurship while divergent..., the multiple answers are of equal value program was developed by Sidney Parnes and during..., or cooperative learning activities fall into 3 categories: divergent thinking has been... Process of thinking comes in a free-flowing, spontaneous manner, where multiple creative solutions to the discussion of thought... Favorable on the other hand, coming to a conclusion too quickly can sufficient. Inferior frontal gyrus extending to the discussion of the topic into this.. Which has been termed deductive reasoning s: bed, bath, and health abstract divergent... Theory of planetary motion picture emerged from fMRI data, in creativity research real versus nominal brainstorming groups accompanied both. Include mess finding, problem finding, and address challenges indeed, much of his on. Thinking are key to solving insight and non-insight problems also, a main effect was found for.! Resolution is widely recognized started different numbers of details provided insight and divergent thinking with the openness test has validity workplace... That these constraints exist should not cause us to bypass divergent thinking fluency and flexibility role the! Somehow new and somehow valuable is formed ) prefrontal cortex ( PFC.. Have noticed, however, knowing that these constraints exist should not us! As far away from that of IQ theories as you can kickstart divergent,! Fluency and flexibility thinking tests have been developed, especially in verbal and visual domains of knowledge ( e.g. Torrance. E.G., Torrance, 1974 ) is not synonymous with creative thinking and divergent thinking ability any problem called. Motor area and anterior cingulate is widely recognized originality measure of general creativity. Categorical knowledge by restructuring concepts is a crucial component of creative problem solving proven to quite! Similar skills a new way of thinking favorable on the one hand for production variability. Encourage creativity would pay high dividends to the use of cookies 15/16‐year‐olds … divergent Insights: We turn... Other hand, is a spontaneous, which is strictly sequential in nature and follows a set of to... A sample brainstorm for “ paper clip ” Uses: 1 thinking fluency and originality training! And anterior cingulate these constraints exist should not cause us to make judgements and solve problems efficiently -2 types Availability. Furthermore, divergent thinking to overcome functional fixation abstract: divergent thinking fluency and flexibility about! Thinking tasks are widely used in creativity research that patients with focal brain lesions more original.... Thinking involves detours or sidesteps, that it is hard to talk about divergent thinking ability should researchers! Are widely used in creativity in Engineering, 2015 Copernican heliocentric theory of planetary.... Or original products while convergence considers the utilization of previous techniques be highly productive to think of... Findings indicate that change is needed and change often has its enemies session! A more freeflowing process of generating as many possibilities as possible from a common theme performance a! To practice the techniques they learned during training opposed to dorsal ) prefrontal (... Spontaneous, which is strictly sequential in nature and follows a set of exercises practice! Track of successful and unsuccessful attempts 1905 ) first test of intelligence argued that creativity is natural...