Malaysian Psychometric Test of Creativity and Innovation

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1 Malaysian Psychometric Test of Creativity and Innovation AYESHA BADIB Department of English HELP University BZ-2 Pusat Bandar Damansara 50490, Kuala Lumpur MALAYSIA Abstract: - Globalisation has increased competition for seeking talent in having the best human capital as a valuable asset. In order to achieve a developed nation status, graduates need to be flexible, able to adapt and be globally compatible. Creativity and innovation (CI) is a major contributor towards organisational change, growth and development. To determine the level of creativity of students in Malaysia, the country needs an instrument that can be applied in the local context while incorporating social, cultural and religious understanding. The Malaysian Creativity and Innovation Instrument 47 (MyCrIn47) aims to achieve this goal. MyCrIn47 consists of five constructs: higher order thinking (HOT), curiosity (CUR), sensitivity (SEN), visionary (VIS), adaptable to change (ATC). This study aims to examine MyCrIn47 in order to determine the reliability and validity of the instrument, provide a CI measurement model, establish a Malaysian CI index and determine a CI student profile of university students in Malaysia. The study was carried out on a sample of 655 university students using a quantitative approach. The Rasch Measurement was used to analyse the reliability and validity of the instrument using item-person reliability index and item-person separation index, item-person mapping, item polarity, item dimensionality, and item fit statistics. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to determine whether CI can be defined by the five constructs and produce a CI measurement model of MyCrIn47. Rasch Measurement was then used to produce a Malaysian CI index to determine a CI student profile. Results found MyCrIn47 to have a high item reliability index of 1.00 and a person reliability index of Item separation index was at and person separation index was at The five constructs were found to have a good model fit that describes CI in producing a MyCrIn measurement model. Person strata found three distinct groups, where CI index of low CI ability was determined at < -4.7 logits, average CI ability between logits, and high CI ability at > 3.1 logits. A CI student profile was then determined according to the CI index in order to identify CI students in line with the country s vision of moving towards a more developed and progressive nation. Key-Words: - creativity, innovation, MyCrIn47, reliability, validity, Rasch measurement, measurement model 1 Introduction Creativity is the most important tool for a person to be equipped with in order to face life s challenges [1]. [2] define creativity as the ability to generate a product that is original and useful in a person s life. Creativity is a continuous process to produce original and valuable work. It is the skill and ability that make an uncommon relationship to generate new and appropriate ideas [3]. [4], suggests that overall innovation begins with creative ideas by individuals or teams and is the starting point for innovation. Therefore, the inculcation of creativity and innovation (CI) amongst graduates must be highlighted in order to optimise their potential so as to provide meaningful contribution to the country s development. In order to achieve the status of a developed nation, we need to have graduates who are flexible, able to adapt and are able to compete globally [5]. Therefore, under the initiation of the [5], the Malaysian Creativity and Innovation Instrument (MyCrIn) was developed in order to add to the creative output of the nation and allow for consistent progress in inculcating CI within the country. MyCrIn was then enhanced into a more concise and comprehensive instrument of MyCrIn47, which will be the focus of this study. Malaysia in particular, is a culturally influenced society, bound by social, cultural and religious values. Each race is a representation of not only national ethical morals but religious values that unite the people and allow an understanding of cultural sensitivities [6]. Therefore, the development of a creativity test tailored to the local context in incorporating the country s religious, cultural and ISBN:

2 social values are important in order to accurately identify the level of CI amongst graduates in Malaysia [6]. 2 Methodology The study was carried out using the quantitative approach on a sample of 655 students from a Malaysian Higher-Learning Institution (HLI). MyCrIn47 consists of 47 polytomous (5- point Likert scale) and dichotomous items, and is comprised of five constructs, namely, Higher Order Thinking (HOT), Curiosity (CUR), Sensitivity (SEN), Visionary (VIS), and Adaptable to Change (ATC). Rasch Measurement was used in examining the reliability and validity of MyCrIn47 in analysing item polarity, item dimensionality, item-person reliability and separation index, item-person mapping, fit statistics, and item probability curve. Once overall analyses had been satisfied, in-depth analyses for each construct was then examined separately in order to determine its reliability and validity individually. Once instrument reliability and validity had been analysed, Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was then used to determine the MyCrIn47 measurement model. Rasch Measurement was used once again in order to determine the CI index and CI student profile. 3 Findings The findings will be divided into four sections. The first section will address the reliability and validity of MyCrIn47 according to item-person reliability, item-person separation index, item-person mapping and detailing of item difficulty. The findings of SEM analyses will then be presented in order to determine the relationship of variables that define CI. The third section will then revert back to the Rasch Measurement Model, using the key-form map in order to determine the Malaysian CI index. Lastly, the fourth section will present the CI student profile in using descriptive statistics. Table 1 Item-person reliability and separation index Reliability Infit MNSQ Outifit MNSQ Reliability Separation Max Min Max Min Index Index Item Person The distribution of items according to construct against persons can be seen on the itemperson map in Figure 1. Overall, there is a fair distribution of items in each construct. The head of distribution of items is located well above the person threshold which allows measurement in growth of highly creative individuals. In turn, the tail of distribution of items also hang considerably below the person threshold, which allows the measurement of weaker individuals. Items also show a gradual increase in difficulty from ATC to HOT, which is in line with the literature where construct HOT displays the highest level of CI. Items HOT_Q04, HOT_Q01, HOT_Q03, and HOT_Q2 seem to be at a lower level of ability, however, it is justifiable as they are Likert scale items, while the other HOT items are Dichotomous items. Items VIS_Q36, VIS_Q37, ATC_Q39, ATC_Q40 and ATC_Q41 also seem to be at a higher difficulty level than its construct gradient, however, they are justifiable as they are Dichotomous items while the other items in the construct are Likert scale items. Figure 1 Item-Person Map 3.1 Reliability and Validity The reliability index is used to determine the reliability of the items and persons, where a reliability index of > 0.80 is accepted and considered reliable [7]. Table 1 show that MyCrIn has an extremely high item reliability of 1.00 and a person reliability of 0.8. ISBN:

3 Overall results also found a progression in the difficulty of items according to constructs. As illustrated in Figure 2, HOT was found to be the construct with the highest level of difficulty. CUR was found to be the second most difficult construct, followed by SEN, VIS and lastly ATC being the construct with the lowest level of difficulty. Items ATC_Q39, ATC_Q40, and ATC_Q41, however, have a high level of item difficulty and is not in line with the progression of items. A closer look at the items reveal that this is because these items are of a Dichotomous scale, while the other ATC items are of Likert scale items. This is the reason for the high level of item difficulty as compared to the other items in the construct. Therefore, its level of item difficulty is acceptable. This is also found in construct VIS, where items VIS_Q36 and VIS_37 have a higher level of item difficulty as compared to its other items and do not fall in line with the progression of items. However, it is due to the items being a Dichotomous scale item, which explains its high level of item difficulty, while the other VIS items are of Likert scale items. This is the reason for the high level of item difficulty as compared to the other items in the construct. Therefore, its level of item difficulty is acceptable. 3.2 Measurement Model Figure 2 shows the results where it was found that the magnitude of the factor loadings were substantially significant, where CFI = 0.952, TLI = and RMSEA = Figure 2 MyCrIn47 Measurement Model The results indicated that the parameters were free from offending estimates, ranging from 0.67 to The CFI (0.952) and TLI (0.905) fit indicators exceed threshold of 0.90, indicating a good fit. The root-mean square of approximation (RMSEA = 0.161) indicate a good fit, and the normed chisquare met the required threshold of < 5, where a value between 1 and 3 indicate a high goodness of fit value (Hair et al. 2006). Hence, the fit indices indicate a good fit, where the latent variables is indeed measured by the five observed variables. Measures of the model was then calculated using AMOS version 18. Acceptable thresholds of fit indices were analysed according to the fit indices stipulated [8], [9], [10], [11] in Table 2. All fit indices were found to fall within the stipulated range. Table 2 Index Goodness of Fit Name Acceptable Model Threshold Normed chi-square (x 2 /df) Chi square (p) Root mean square residual (RMSEA) Tucker Lewis Fit Index (TLI) Comparative Fit Index (CFI) Fit Index (IFI) Loading Determining CI Index Since the empirical evidence has proven MyCrIn47 to be reliable and supported the argument for the validity of MyCrIn47, the next procedure is to determine the index of CI. Figure 3 illustrates the categories of ability level according to strata. MyCrIn has a separation index of 2.01, therefore if G represents the value of the separation index, the number of levels H is represented in the formula [7]: H = (4 x G + 1) / 3 This means that MyCrIn has a strata of 3.01, which makes it possible to distinguish at least 3 different levels of CI ability. The point of high CI would be where the respondent would be predicted to respond strongly agree (5) on all polytomous items and yes/valid answer (1) on all dichotomous items. The point of low CI would be where the respondent would be predicted to respond strongly disagree (1) on all polytomous items and no/invalid answer (0) on all dichotomous items. Figure 3 illustrates ISBN:

4 these three levels of abilities according to logit measures. This is then translated into measures to determine the index of CI. As seen in Table 3, the index of high CI can be determined at the measure of 3.1 logits and above. Persons with medium CI can be determined between the range of -4.7 to 3.1 logits, while low creativity index is < 3.1 logits. Hence, individuals can be deemed to have CI ability, average CI ability, and low CI ability at the stipulated index measures. Figure 3 CI Index In order to compete on a global stage, the nation s talent is its most valuable asset. The nation s labour forces must be flexible, adaptive and competitive on the global, regional and national levels. The nation needs to improve upon the skills needed to fill the gaps and achieve an advanced economic status. This is to allow equal opportunity to the citizens to earn a comfortable living and provide a secure, happy life for all. The standards of living of the society need to be improved upon through fostering a CI culture in all sectors of academia, business and civil society. The nation must mould the people towards enhancing their CI skills. MyCrIn47 model serves as a CI accelerator in grooming the people towards improving talent in order to compete at a global level. Figure 4 CI Student Profile Table 3 Malaysian CI Index CI Index Logit measures Low CI < -4.7 logit Average CI High CI > Student Profile Results found that majority of the respondents fell with the range of average CI ability. Only 1.5% of respondents have high CI ability with a measure of > 3.1 logits. Simultaneously, only 1.7% of respondents have low CI ability with a measure of < -4.7 logits. This illustrates the need in promoting the cultivation of CI amongst the youth in order to produce graduates that will be able to compete globally. This will in turn produce a better human capital that will act as the most valuable asset of the nation. 4 Discussion Overall, the results found MyCrIn47 to be a reliable instrument which consistently produces accurate measurements. This means that when MyCrIn47 is administered to other samples of the similar characteristics, it will be able to produce stable and consistent measures. MyCrIn47 has a fair distribution of items where there is a gradual increase in item difficulty throughout the measurement scale. The head of the distribution of items is located well above the person threshold. This is an advantage as it also allows the instrument to be used as a test to measure the growth of respondent creativity. The items above the person threshold acts as a leeway to allow room for respondent improvement. This reveals that MyCrIn47 is not only an instrument to measure CI, but can also be used as an instrument to re-test respondents and monitor CI growth. If the item threshold was similar to the person threshold, then the higher achieving respondents would have already hit the roof of the instrument without any ISBN:

5 possibility of measuring respondents growth in ability [12]. The tail of MyCrIn47 is also located well below the person threshold which allows the instrument to accurately measure respondents with low CI ability. Hence, MyCrIn47 is an instrument that has a wide spread of items that can be used to accurately measure high and low ability respondents while allowing room for improvement in CI ability. [12] triarchic Theory of Intelligence supports the progression of items, where HOT assumes the highest level of item difficulty. Through the intellectual facet of creativity, a certain level of intelligence is needed in order to produce a high level of creativity [12], [13], [14], [15], [16], [17]. Just as in the case of Bloom s Taxonomy, HOT is at the top of the pyramid of synthesis. It is when the individual is able to manipulate knowledge in various methods of critical analyses and syntheses in order to obtain maximal creative productivity [12], [13], [14], [15], [16], [17]. HOT is the cognitive ability to recognise a problem and subsequently define the problem in order to define its structure into a more meaningful and soluble manner. Once the problem is palatable, the individual will be able to establish the relationship between the elements and simultaneously distinguish the relevant information. The progression of items in MyCrIn47 therefore explains the levels of CI ability according to CI personality, where all five elements of ATC, VIS, SEN, CUR and HOT are needed in order to obtain a high level of CI ability. Once reliability of MyCrIn47 had been examined and found to be reliable, analysis was then carried forth to confirm the measurement model of MyCrIn47. CFA of SEM was used to confirm the model as it can easily depict the relationship between the latent variable and its observed variables. In the case of MyCrIn, the five constructs HOT, CUR, SEN VIS and ATC were hypothesised to be the observed variables that describe MyCrIn. Results confirmed the hypothesis when the measurement model was found to be valid. The absolute fit indices revealed that the measurement model had a chi-square of 3.139, where a value of < 5 is considered accepted [8], [9], [10], [11]. The normed chi-square goodness of fit suggests that the proposed model generated the observed covariance matrix, where the constructs fit the MyCrIn47 model in measuring CI. The root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was found to be 0.057, where a RMSEA value 0.08 indicates better fit accepted [8], [9], [10], [11]. Hence, the value indicates the five constructs fit the measurement model. The comparative fit index (CFI) is normed so that values above 0.8 and close to 0.9 indicate acceptable fit, while values close to 1 indicate a very good fit [8], [9]. Results found the measurement model to have a CFI of 0.988, which indicates a very good fit as it is rather close to 1. Another incremental fit index is the Tucker Lewis Index (TLI) that predates CFI and is conceptually similar, where a value of 0.90 is considered as a good fit. Results showed that the TLI for MyCrIn47 was at 0.976, which endorses a good fit. The chi-square (pvalue), however was found to be In SEM, the smaller the p-value, the greater the chance that observed sample and SEM estimated variance are not equal. However, the mathematical properties of the chi-square test can sometimes present unpleasant properties when the variables and sample is > 400 [8], [9], [10], [11]. Therefore, in this study, the low p-value is due to a large sample size (N=655), and is not indicative of a bad fit. Hence, all indices reveal that all five constructs of HOT, CUR, SEN, VIS and ATC are valid constructs with a good fit that are measuring CI, providing a MyCrIn47 measurement model. Subsequently, the Malaysian CI index has been determined at a measure of < -4.7 logits of low CI ability, followed by average CI ability at a measure of logits, and high CI ability at a measure of > 3.1 logits. The existing level of CI must first be determined in order to cultivate CI in the generation of today through strengthening the building blocks of CI. This is achieved by building upon the future skills of today. The youth need to be cultivated to be critical, creative and constructive thinkers as these are the core skills for CI to flourish. We must, therefore, ensure that the youth are nourished with the skills and knowledge that will harness their full potential in order to maximise CI productivity of the nation. The right mindset and attitude need to be inculcated in order to effectively promote continued growth, betterment and advancement of the people so as to be able to take on the challenges of a rapidly globalising world. In a culturally influenced society, MyCrIn47 acts as a CI accelerator in identifying the level of CI amongst the generation of today. Once the capabilities of the youth are determined, measures can be taken to groom the youth towards generating a pool of CI human capital. Human capital becomes even more valuable when it has been exposed to skills, expertise, practices and varied experience. Investment in CI allows for a productive human capital that yields social and ISBN:

6 private returns through CI skills for economic development and social progress. As the nation develops and the marketplace becomes more competitive, the demand for a highly skilled workforce grows more intense. Individuals need to be able to fulfil this demand by acquiring the ability to adapt to changes and be flexible in acclimating at a global level. Graduates need to master HOT skills, which are the very ultimate element of CI that equip individuals to master advanced problem-solving skills. Producing graduates who are innovative and holistic will ensure sustainability of the nation with a generation of critical and analytical minds [18]. Malaysia is a culturally rich society with various ethnic groups that exist within the nation. This unique characteristic is the element that socially connects the people through a cultural understanding of each other s beliefs and practices. This diversity provides Malaysia with substantial advantages. Diversity of culture, ethnicity and religions enables a society to leverage the best of each group s traits and skills and traits for the good of the society as a whole. Diversity of culture also stimulates CI. This diversity allows for culturally rich human capital that will enhance competition in improving towards a CI generation. MyCrIn incorporates these social understandings that allows for a valid and reliable testing of CI abilities according the local Malaysian context in grooming the people towards a CI generation. Malaysia is opening a new chapter of development towards realising the vision of becoming a developed nation by 2020 [5]. Enhanced national competitiveness and resilience is given priority through the changing domestic and global economic landscape. Improvement of the economy is one of the major elements in the nation s development plan of which needs to be executed through the development of more CI driven enterprises. CI needs to be implemented in order to develop upon the creative ideas to make specific and tangible differences economically and socially [18]. In order to compete on a global stage, the nation s talent is its most valuable asset. The nation s labour forces must be flexible, adaptive and competitive on the global, regional and national levels. The nation needs to improve upon the skills needed to fill the gaps and achieve an advanced economic status. This is to allow equal opportunity to the citizens to earn a comfortable living and provide a secure, happy life for all [19]. The standards of living of the society need to be improved upon through fostering a CI culture in all sectors of academia, business and civil society. The nation must mould the people towards enhancing their CI skills. MyCrIn47 model serves as a CI accelerator in grooming the people towards improving talent in order to compete at a global level. An advanced nation is not solely about the income level. The economic structure must be more developed, specialised and technology driven. In addition, effective institutions must be in place to ensure good governance. The benefits of such improvements should be accessible to all communities and income groups. After achieving an advanced nation status, maintaining that position will require continuous efforts. A leading advanced nation must incorporate the people s needs and provide a comfortable standard of living [19]. This is done through nurturing and upgrading CI skills in all areas. In order to achieve that, four main key areas should be focused upon in fostering CI. These include HLIs and public research institutes (PRI), the youth, the industry, and the government [18]. Each of these key areas represent its own separate layer which relies on the support and efforts of each other in order to successfully shape the country into a CI nation. According to [5], to become an innovative Nation, we need a mental transformation in the Government, industry and the education sector. This is to shape the attitude of our future generations. This is our mission [5]. Collectively, each layer is able to bring about positive change that can steer towards the direction of a CI nation. 5 Conclusion This research has managed to make four successful empirical contributions to the literature and has managed to take a step towards realising the goals of the [5]. The validation of MyCrIn47, together with the verification of its measurement model, Malaysian CI index and CI student profile, hopes to enable institutions, government organisations and individuals to determine their CI ability in order to work towards producing graduates that are able to adapt and compete at a global level. The development of CI ability amongst HLI graduates will allow the youth of the nation to be flexible in overcoming challenges and contribute to the development and progress of the nation. The inculcation of CI allows graduates to adapt to changes and provide meaningful contribution to the growth of the country. References: ISBN:

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