POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 1. Positive Environmental Factors for Creativity. Teresa Lefko Sprague. Buffalo State College

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1 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 1 Positive Environmental Factors for Creativity Teresa Lefko Sprague Buffalo State College

2 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 2 Abstract Intrinsic motivation and other positive stimulants lead to an environment conducive for creativity. This paper will focus on the six environmental stimulants mentioned in Teresa Amabile s instrument known as KEYS: Assessing the Climate for Creativity. The six factors demonstrate several different ways to create an environment that provokes creativity that leads to innovation, while setting the stage for an individual s intrinsic motivation to grow. This focus was chosen because the words creativity and innovation have seen an insurgence in corporate America, and there is a desire to understand how businesses and corporations can incorporate these ideas into their organizations.

3 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 3 Michael Jordan, who by the mid-1990s was the most financially successful basketball player in history, insisted on a love of the game clause in his contract securing him the right to play in pick-up games whenever he wished. (Amabile, 1997, p. 39) This idea, that no matter how successful he had become, and how much financial stability he had amassed, the pure passion for his trade was still the driving force of his career, is incredible. The Intrinsic Motivation Principle of Creativity applies across all settings, from scientific methodology to business practice, product creation and more. Intrinsic motivation is defined as working on something that is interesting, involving, exciting, satisfying or personally challenging. (Amabile, 1997, p. 39) After a lifetime of successes on the court, Michael Jordan still looked for new and better ways to improve his game. There is an abundance of evidence that supports this idea that people, even like Michael Jordan, will be most creative when they are intrinsically motivated, regardless of any extrinsic motivation that may also be involved in the work. Teresa Amabile has put together some of the most extensive research on the topic of creative environments in businesses. Twenty years of research has proven that a person s social environment can have a significant effect on that person s level of intrinsic motivation at any point in time; the level of intrinsic motivation can, in turn, have a significant effect on that person s creativity. (Amabile, 1997, p. 40) While intrinsic motivation is deeply personal to each individual, there are many important factors that contribute to the social and psychological environment of creativity that allow that motivation to flourish.

4 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 4 In my opinion, and in the opinion of many scholars, intrinsic motivation is the most important factor to creativity in the workplace. As discussed, this motivation is not something that can be handed to, created for or specifically given to an individual. Thus, it is important to properly understand the environmental factors needed to create a setting in which creativity can thrive. Organizations, corporations and all businesses should work towards providing these elements in order to induce an individual s ability to personally relate to, and be motivated by, their work. The creative environment, or press as it is often referred to, is the social, physical and psychological setting an individual works within. (Davis, 2004, p. 48) This is a very broad topic and is perhaps the most ambiguously defined piece of the Fours Ps of creativity. For the purposes here, I will be focusing on reviewing and understanding the research behind the proven positive features of the social and psychological creative environment, most specifically in a corporate structure. By implementing some, if not most, of the following elements a business can provide a setting that will contribute to satisfying an individuals and teams needs to work creatively, and thus provide the best possible results. A primary research tool to define these factors was created in the form of an instrument titled KEYS: Assessing the Climate for Creativity. Teresa Amabile, with a team of colleagues, used this measure to assess work environments. Included within this structure are six scales that focus on the Environmental Stimulants to Creativity. (Amabile, 1997, p. 46) Freedom, positive challenge, supervisory encouragement, work group supports, organizational encouragement and sufficient resources are factors that are

5 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 5 positively related to creative work outcomes. Examining each of these pieces individually will better demonstrate their contribution to the creative work environment. Freedom is defined as an individuals ability to decide what work to do, or how to do it; namely a sense of control over one s work. (Lin & Liu, 2012, p. 62) An ability to choose one s projects gives a greater sense of ownership and will to succeed. While this seems like a fairly simple principle I doubt it plays out very commonly in the workplace. Though we typically choose the field in which we will work, the tasks associated on a day-to-day basis of a specific position are often dictated by needs, and assigned on that basis. This is something I have found to regularly detract from my personal creativity. As an Art Director for a Creative Services team, within a health insurance company, I would guess 90% of my projects are assigned to me for completion without any personal choosing. While I typically do not mind the work, a larger need to search for creative solutions to the design issues at hand is typically hindered by not only deadlines, but by a lack of vested interest in the project. If, as a team, we could sit down and each choose which projects we wanted to work on, based on what we were most interested in and felt strongly about, I would suspect we would find much better, creative solutions to present to the client. Several researchers support this notion and state that creativity is often fostered when individuals and teams have a relatively high autonomy in their daily work tasks. (Amabile, Conti, Coon, Lazenby & Herron, 1996, p. 1161) The second factor is viewed as the challenge of the work. A sense of having to work hard on challenging tasks and important projects is an innate need for many successful people. (Amabile, 1997, p. 48) Individuals wish to feel involved in their work. With that involvement comes hard work that requires dedication to the cause, and a

6 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 6 challenging desire to search for the best solution. I find that not every project in the work place can be incredibly challenging, but the ones that are, feel very rewarding. I have also noticed a domino effect that a project of this capacity can have. After successfully and creatively completing a challenging project there is a feeling of self worth that often carries through in some form to my levels of motivation for the next few items I work on, regardless of their importance. A supervisor who serves as a good work model, sets goals appropriately, supports the work group, values individual contribution and shows confidence in the work group is viewed as supervisory encouragement. (Lin & Liu, 2012, p. 62) This is best supported in three ways: goal clarity, open interaction between supervisors and subordinates, and supervisory support of work and ideas. Open communication and interactions with a supervisor, and support of an individuals ideas from that supervisor, are most closely associated with an individuals feelings of fairness, and thus helps eliminate an individuals fear of negative criticism. (Amabile, et al., 1996, p. 1160) I find this idea incredibly interesting due to the hierarchy of my company s structure. I feel a great amount of support from my manager everyday. He is helpful, encouraging, works with me to solve problems, and allows me to openly discuss ideas. However, he reports to a Vice President, which reports to a Chief Marketing Officer who reports to a Board, and so on, and so forth. While in a small way I feel there is a great amount of supervisory encouragement, the inability for this to translate into my working relationship with other supervisors is difficult at times. Even when a job is well done, I do not often receive that feedback from a higher level. Also, though the company speaks to a model of open communication, and I feel that the higher supervisors would like me to think they are

7 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 7 approachable, it would not be without a personal feeling that I was disturbing their day, or taking up their time. Until this feeling of encouragement and support works throughout the hierarchy of the company, I feel the full potential of our creativity is deterred. Similar to this concept is that of work group support. Defined as a diversely skilled work group in which people communicate well, are open to new ideas, constructively challenge each others work, trust and help each other, and have a feeling of commitment to the work they are doing. (Lin & Liu, 2012, p. 62) Free and open communication in a group setting leads to similar feelings of openness, fairness and the removal of the fear of negative criticism that can are found through supervisory encouragement. The main difference, obviously, is that in this setting you are working with the camaraderie and togetherness that a diverse group can offer. This team member diversity, and mutual openness of ideas, positively impacts creative thinking by exposing individuals to a greater variety of new and unusual ideas. (Amabile, et al., 1996, p. 1160) I work in a department that divides projects and operates on the whole as a team, working to support each other in a simple manner that ensures all of our work is completed. However, when it comes to each task, most projects are each person for themselves to complete, and thus lacking any true group support. I do, however, feel fortunate enough that when larger, more important items come into creative services, I have a wonderfully supportive and collaborative group, with several different backgrounds, to work with. The fifth factor, and last piece of encouragement, comes from the organization. The culture must support creativity through the fair, constructive judgment of ideas, reward and recognition for creative work, mechanisms for developing new ideas, an active flow of ideas and a shared vision for what the organization is trying to do. (Lin &

8 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 8 Liu, 2012, p. 62) The true nature of corporate creativity is that creative ideas are not planned for, and often come from the least expected of places. Companies can drastically improve their creative performance once they recognize the nature of their creativity, and learn how to actively promote unanticipated improvements and innovations. (Robinson & Stern, 1997, p.14) Creativity and innovation have recently become major buzzwords in the corporate world, and have thus been positioned into companies mission and vision statements. On paper this sounds great, and has definitely aided in laying the proper groundwork for success. Unfortunately, in practice it is often a case of saying one thing, and doing another. I believe my company wants to embrace these values, but I don t often see this in practice. I think they are rolling in the right direction, albeit at slower speeds, as the industry has forced them to find a way to adjust to the changing climate of health insurance. They realize if they do not find new and better solutions to create products that individuals want to buy, they will be left in the dust. All three forms of encouragement, supervisory, work group, and organizational are crucial to the creative work environment. The root of creativity is innovation, and it is more likely to occur in groups where members have made a decision to be innovative, and the support of this decision comes from the whole group, as well as the managers that are in charge of it. These feelings need to begin with the core leaders of the organization, so they can filter through. For this environment to thrive, the support for innovation needs to be the expectation, and with that comes the continual approval of attempts to introduce new and improved ways of doing things. (Thompson & Choi, 2012, p. 150) Personally, I feel that together these three factors may be the most important to ensuring a creative environment in which work can occur.

9 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 9 The last piece to Amabile s KEYS instrument is sufficient resources. The access to appropriate resources, including funds, materials, facilities and information is directly related to a project s creativity levels. (Lin & Liu, 2012, p. 62) There are the obvious limitations that a lack of resources could greatly restrict a group s accomplishments, but there is also the psychological consequences, both positive and negative, of the perception by individuals of the adequacy, or inadequacy of their resources. (Amabile, et al., 1996, p. 1161) Both of these notions greatly affect the creativity of the environment. One of the benefits of being part of a large organization or business is that even though budgets can be tight, the ability for resources to be a plenty may exist. There are a multitude of individuals with experiences to draw from, and plenty of resources that can be shared between departments. For me, the most important factor is the value my company places on education and knowledge, and the platforms for which they allow employees to attain these items. The perception by many is that creativity comes from within each individual, not from the outside. (Miller, 1987, p. 33) However, after reviewing Amabile s positive factors for ensuring a creative climate in her KEYS tool, it is clear the environment is a very important factor for an individual s successful innovation. An organization needs to allow for freedom, positive challenge, supervisory encouragement, work group supports, organizational encouragement and sufficient resources in order to best realize their employees full potential and individual creativities. By properly working to create an environment in which innovation and creativity are not only accepted, but also pushed to thrive, gives the greatest chance that intrinsic motivation will be present in many of the employees. Intrinsic motivation will lead to a great work ethic that produces wonderfully

10 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 10 innovative solutions by incorporating creativity on a regular basis. Working within windowless, white, cubicle walls has often made me feel that my creativity was stifled. While I am sure this physical space is not necessarily the most conducive to bringing about creativity, I have realized that there are several psychological factors that greatly contribute to an organizations creative environment. Many of these six pieces are present in some form or another, in my company. I feel they are on the right track, and that they do desire to create an environment that is not only open and accepting of creativity, but pushes to make it a part of every day. That being said, there are several ways in which they could improve, and I hope they evolve to make these changes sooner, rather than later, to allow the company to remain competitive and on the cutting edge.

11 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 11 References Amabile, T. (1997). Motivating creativity in organizations: On doing what you love and loving what you do. California Management Review, 40(1), Amabile, T., Conti, R., Coon, H., Lazenby, J. & Herron, M. (1996). Assessing the Work Environment for Creativity. The Academy of Management Journal, 39(5), Davis, G. (2004). Creativity is forever. (5th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company. Lin, C. & F. Liu (2012). A cross-level analysis of organizational creativity climate and perceived innovation: The mediating effect of work motivation. European Journal of Innovation Management, 15(1), Miller, C. (1987). The creative edge: Fostering innovation where you work. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc. Robinson, A., & S. Stern (1997). Corporate creativity: How innovation and improvement actually happen. San Francisco, CA: Barrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc. Thompson, L. & Choi, H.S. (Eds.) (2006). Creativity and innovation in organizational teams. New York City, NY: Psychology Press.

12 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 12 Appendix Amabile, T. (1997). Motivating creativity in organizations: On doing what you love and loving what you do. California Management Review, 40(1), Amabile, T., Barsade, S., Mueller, J. & Staw, B. (2005). Affect and creativity at work. Administrative Science Quarterly, 50(3), Amabile, T., Conti, R., Coon, H., Lazenby, J. & Herron, M. (1996). Assessing the work environment for creativity. The Academy of Management Journal, 39(5), Cokpekin, O. & Knudsen, M. (2012). Does organizing for creativity reakky lead to innovation?. Creativity and Innovation Management, 21(3), Davis, G. (2004). Creativity is forever. (5th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company. Lin, C. & F. Liu (2012). A cross-level analysis of organizational creativity climate and perceived innovation: The mediating effect of work motivation. European Journal of Innovation Management, 15(1), Miller, C. (1987). The creative edge: Fostering innovation where you work. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc. Puccio, G., Mance, M., Switalski, L. & P. Reali (2012). Creativity rising: Creative thinking and creative problems solving in the 21 st century. Buffalo, NY: ICSC Press. Robinson, A., & S. Stern (1997). Corporate creativity: How innovation and improvement actually happen. San Francisco, CA: Barrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.

13 POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR CREATIVITY 13 Thompson, L. & Choi, H.S. (Eds.) (2006). Creativity and innovation in organizational teams. New York City, NY: Psychology Press.