Continuing a Dictionary of Creativity Terms and Definitions (PDF)

Continuing a Dictionary of Creativity Terms and Definitions Used with permission of William E. Grieshober. Copyright 2004, William E. Grieshober.  Continuing a Dictionary of Creativity Terms and Definitions By William E. Grieshober A Project in Creative Studies Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science December 2004 State University of New York College at Buffalo International Center for Studies in Creativity Buffalo State College The International Center for Studies in Creativity  _______________________ ______________________________ _______________________ ______________________________ Continuing a Dictionary of Creativity Terms and Definitions A Project in Creative Studies by William E. Grieshober Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science December 2004 Dates of Approval William E. Grieshober, Candidate Dr. Mary C. Murdock, Advisor The International Center for Studies in Creativity ii  Abstract A Dictionary of Creativity Terms and Definitions in English and Other Languages This project is a continuation of the collective works of Aldrich (2001) and Kimball (2002) who developed a dictionary of frequently used terms found in the literature of the discipline of creativity. The initial language and terms were collected from (1) recent edited collections of creativity; (2) recent issues of the Creativity Research Journal; Journal of Creative Behavior; Creativity and Innovation Management Journal; (3) The International Center for Studies in Creativity course curriculum; and (4) the Creativity Based Information Resources (CBIR) database. Criteria for the initial selections were frequency, crossover and repetition across these sources. For this project additions to the initial language and terms were made from the above sources based upon the works of selected professionals in the field of creativity and words and phrases of selected students of the International Center for Studies in Creativity who are fluent in languages other than English. The dictionary portion of this project contains 970 terms and definitions. Additionally, the project documents the process of selection; the key learning’s of the author and potential applications for the field. iii  Acknowledgements I’d like to begin by stating how grateful I am to Garth Aldrich for starting this project in the first place. I also am thankful that Danielle Kimball followed it up with phase two and left electronic media to be used by those who came later. I am grateful to everyone at the International Center for Studies in Creativity; students, faculty and staff. Most of all to Dr. Mary Murdock, at whose suggestion I took up this project to continue the dictionary of creativity. Also thanks are due to Cyndi Argona, Mike Fox and Sue Keller-Mathers for their willingness to assist me in gathering non-English words and terms. Mike and Sue helped by asking their students in Kenya and Malaysia to provide me with some terms in their native languages, while Cyndi connected me with the international students in the distance cohort on the Buffalo State College campus. I am especially thankful for the help of those students and members of the international community who provided me with words and phrases in their native languages that I was able to add to this dictionary, notably: Hideki Muneyoshi, Jean- Pierre Issa, Mark Augustin, Branko Broekman, Irene Balestra, Mari Garcia-Bermejo Gonzalez, Marta Laskowska, Dr. Makary Stasiak, Sylvia Umoh and Albert Tshibangu. Finally I’d like to thank my wife Shelley, and my co-workers in the Small Business Development Center for their support and encouragement. It’s been a long trip, but well worth doing. iv  Table of Contents Abstract…………………………………………………………………...……iii Acknowledgements………………………………………………………….…iv SECTION ONE: SELECTING AND DEFINING THE TOPIC Purpose of the Project…………………………………….…….1 Significance of the Project……………………………………...1 SECTION TWO: COLLECTION AND ORGANIZATION Project Process and Method…………………………………….3 SECTION THREE: KEY LEARNINGS AND OUTCOMES Learnings………………………………………………………..4 Outcomes………………………………………………………..5 SECTION FOUR: SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Going Forward…………………………………………………..5 APPENDICES Appendix A – Dictionary……………………………………….6 Appendix B – Bibliography………………………………….…81 Appendix C – Literature List…………………………………..83 Appendix D – References……………………………………...98 Appendix E – Concept Paper…………………………………..99 v  SECTION ONE: SELECTING AND DEFINING THE TOPIC Purpose of the Project The purpose of this project was to complete the preparation of a dictionary of creativity terms and to build its trial version upon the collective works of Aldrich (2001) and Kimball (2002). These two researchers identified 831 words and phrases which were accessible on a CD and in a hard copy notebook internally at the International Center for Studies in Creativity (ICSC) at Buffalo State College. The questions guiding this project were: • How to increase the current sample of vocabulary related to the field and domain of creativity? o What criteria would be appropriate for selection? o How to identify the key creativity researchers and practitioners? • What other recommendations are there for specialized vocabulary and how might we obtain that? Significance of the Project Both Aldrich and Kimball attempted, in phases one and two, “…to communicate words into a common creativity language.” (Aldrich, 2001, p.6). This was begun when Aldrich initially compiled a list and partial definition of creativity terms based upon two criteria. Those criteria were recency and common usage in the field of creativity. The initial language and terms were collected from (1) recent edited collections of creativity; (2) recent issues of the Creativity Research Journal; Journal of Creative Behavior; Creativity and Innovation Management Journal; (3) The International Center for Studies  in Creativity course curriculum; and (4) the Creativity Based Information Resources (CBIR) database. Kimball (2002) followed up this initial compilation by defining previously unidentified terms and updating definitions from the two volumes of the Encyclopedia of Creativity (1999). For this project we focused activities on further increasing the scope of the dictionary base to include terms from specific authors and researchers in the field of creativity. This was done by reviewing the dictionary to evaluate the inclusion of certain identified authors and researchers. The individuals that we identified were: Teresa Amabile, Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi, Gary A. Davis, Edward DeBono, Howard Gardner, Morris Stein and Robert J. Sternberg. We developed a literature list for each of these authors to attempt to identify words and phrases that they have introduced into the language of creativity. We also concentrated on developing a new “special” section of the dictionary to include words and phrases in a number of languages other than English to begin to take into account the cross-cultural needs of the users of the dictionary. To do this we solicited the assistance of the international community within the ICSC. We contacted both current students and alumni of the program and received responses that provided an additional one hundred and twenty-one words in ten non- English languages. While this was a good beginning, it was far from exhausting the list of words that might be included, and I hope that this portion of the project will be continued into the future by students of the program. 2  SECTION TWO: COLLECTING AND ORGANIZING Project Process and Method I began this project by reading both Developing a dictionary of creativity terms and definitions, the projects of Aldrich (2001) and Kimball (2002). I also read Creating creativity: 101 definitions (what Webster never told you) (Aleinikov, Kackmeister & Koenig, 2000) and Creativity, creative thinking, and critical thinking: In search of definitions (Treffinger, 1995) to get a better understanding of the process of defining creativity. I then contacted both Garth Aldrich and Danielle Kimball by e-mail to determine if they had any of the raw data, which they based their work on, available for me to review. While there were no work papers available, I was able to access the compact disc that contained the dictionary in electronic form to use. By having the material in electronic format, I was able to sort the terms and phrases by attributed author. In going through this exercise, it became evident that words, terms and phrases of Amabile, Csikszentmihalyi, Davis, DeBono, Gardner, Stein and Sternberg were prevalent. I discussed these individuals with Dr. Murdock, and we agreed that they would become the specific authors and scholars that could be contacted to request follow-up information. I then performed a literature search, which I have included in appendix B, for these authors and scholars. Finally, I updated the dictionary for certain new attributions, which had not been previously included. 3  The ICSC hosts its international distance certificate students during short summer courses when these students travel to the campus to attend programs. At the beginning of the session, they attend an orientation event to welcome them to the Buffalo State College campus. I used this opportunity to attend the orientation, introduced myself to these students and to ask them to assist me with this project by contributing words and/or phrases that had to do with creativity in their native languages. Additionally, I learned that two of the ICSC instructors would be teaching creativity courses in Malaysia and Nigeria during the summer session. I asked them to assist me by requesting vocabulary contributions of their students as well. I prepared a brief letter, which requested their participation and explained my project for all the international students and provided copies of it to the instructors who were going to be teaching on foreign assignment as well. These requests resulted in more than one hundred terms, words and phrases being contributed to the dictionary. SECTION THREE: KEY LEARNINGS AND OUTCOMES Learnings I had expected to increase my personal knowledge of the terms and language of the field of creativity. But I never anticipated the level to which this increased knowledge would take me. The five years that I spent as a student in pursuit of a Master’s degree in creativity culminated in this project. Lights went on, bells rang and doors opened as I began to go through the materials necessary to complete this project. But even more importantly, I connected with a number of my fellow students who assisted me in adding new words and phrases to the dictionary. 4  There are so many students that I would like to acknowledge the assistance of. It is the feeling of family that pervades the community of the International Center for Studies in Creativity that brings everyone together to help each other on their projects. I have been involved as a member of a group for someone else’s project and not paid too much attention to it. But now I see how we all pitch in to help each other out. I had people approach me and offer to provide non-English words for my project, without my even asking them. They just heard about it from another student. It is this sense of community that is overwhelming. Outcomes I now know eleven different ways to say “creativity.” The wonderful thing about that is that I have one way to understand what is being said. Before I began this program, I didn’t give a lot of thought to what “creativeness” was. Now, here I am, five years later, continuing to decipher in my own mind, the meaning of creating, creativity and creativeness, and in different languages as well. And that is the value of a “dictionary of creativity.” It provides some definitions and meanings to terms that might just be abstract words to those students who are beginning to study the field, as well as a reference point for those who are already working therein. It was a rich and rewarding experience for me personally. SECTION FOUR: SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Going Forward This project is a continuation of a project originally conceived and begun in 2001. This was the third phase of this project, but certainly isn’t the culmination. When I began 5  phase three, I believed that could take this project to completion and subsequently, publication. As I got into it, I saw that there was a lot that could still be done as individual projects. Some of the suggestions that I have for future consideration are: • Continue to work with the international distance cohorts to gather even more words, terms and phrases in non-English languages to fill out that section of the dictionary and make it truly international in scope. o This could be developed into individual projects by language. o This could be a project of one, or more, of the international students. • We have identified a number of researchers and practitioners in the field of creativity so that projects might be developed to: o Get input from those people identified as to what terms they feel need to be included. o Do a thorough search based on the literature identified for each author. • Present the “dictionary” to publishers to see if there is anyone who might be interested in publishing it, probably in a desk reference form. • Continue to research and refine the “dictionary” on a periodic basis as an on- going project of the ICSC. This ‘dictionary of creativity” is a work in progress. It may never be totally completed in the sense that there will be nothing new to add to it. It was a pleasure to add my input and ideas and I look forward to seeing future students of the ICSC add their input and ideas as well. 6  Appendix A– Dictionary A A-Life Studies: A-Life stands for Artificial Life; this is the act of studying the spontaneous emergence of new forms of order. (Sternberg, 1999) AARON Program: A computer model that follows algorithms as they do creative work associated with artistic drawing. (Sternberg, 1999) Ability: The quality or state of being able; especially physical, mental, or legal power to perform. (CBIR, 1999) Ability to change: The extent to which you can obtain or mobilize people, space, time, equipment, and other resources that will be necessary to carry out any CPS application successfully. (CAPS, 2000) Abstraction and Innovation: Abstraction in a real world situation leads to innovation. (Sternberg, 1999) Abstraction: (Parnes Knoller, and Biondi, 1977, Index) An idea which cannot lead to any practical result, something visionary. (American College Dictionary, 1970) Acceptance-finding (A/F): One of six CPS stages) Isakson and Treffinger, 1985; Isakson and Treffinger, 1992), in which potential solutions are translated into a plan of action, so there will be the greatest possible chance that good ideas will become useful ideas. (Isakson, Dorval, and Treffinger, D.J., 1994, Index) Accuracy: (Dacey, 1989, Index) Conformity to truth or to a standard or model. (Collegiate Dictionary, 2001) Academic Background: Educational background prepares individuals for later creative work. (Sternberg, 1999) Achievement: (Isakson, Murdock, Firestein, and Treffinger, 1993b, Index) Something accomplished especially by valor, boldness, or superior ability. (American College Dictionary, 1970) Achievement Motivation: A person who may have significantly higher levels of need for achievement. An example would be an artist, or scientist. (Sternberg, 1999) Action Information: Reflects creative behaviors and creative personality traits which teachers can use to help identify creative students. (Davis, 1998, Index) Action Steps: Used to generate specific actions to address key planning issues identified in Sources of Assistance and Resistance. (CAPS, 2000) 7  Acting: “Pretending to be a character (someone other than oneself) in the context of a drama; the process whereby an actor conceives of a character and reveals that character to the audience.” (Creativity Encyclopedia, 1999) Activity: (Stein, 1974, Index) State of action, doing. (American College Dictionary, 1970) Actors: A person with extraverted personality traits and characteristics. (Sternberg, 1999) Adaptation and Creativity: “Depending on the situation, adaptation can hinder creativity or support it. In some cases, adaptation means tightly conforming to a confining environment that stifles creativity. In other cases, it means creatively adjusting to the subtle nuances of a changing environment.” (Creativity Encyclopedia, 1999) Adaption: (Isakson, 1987, Index) Adjustment of a sense organ to the intensity or quality of stimulation. (Collegiate Dictionary, 2001) Adaptive Regression: The intrusion of unmodulated thoughts in consciousness. (Sternberg, 1999) Adaptor: The general term used to indicate that a person prefers an adaptive creativity style. In discussions of creativity style, this is often further summarized by use of the letter “A” (compared with “I” or a person who prefers an innovative style). (Isakson et al., 1994, Index) Adaptive Options: Direct, supplementary, modification, and tangential. These are the four categories of Idea Generation proposed by Gryskiewicz (1987). (CAPS, 2000) Addiction: (Stein, 1974, Index) State of being given up to some habit, practice, or pursuit. (American College Dictionary, 1970) Adjective Checklist: A “personality inventory.” (Amabile, 1996, Index) Adler’s Theory: (Dacey, 1989, Index) Conscious and Unconscious are defined in terms of their historical development. Dream research results concerning correlations with creativity and deliberate problem solving are given. Examples are given of illumination of solution and creative symbolism during dreaming. (CBIR, 1999) Administration: The supervision and leading of an organization in accordance with established policies. (CBIR, 1999) Administrators (sub term found under Administration): One that administers especially business, school, or government affairs. (CBIR, 1999) 8  Adolescence: (Stein, 1974) The state or process of growing up. (Collegiate Dictionary, 2001) Adolescent (sub term found under age): The period of life from puberty to maturity terminating at the age of majority. Typically ages 13 through 17. (CBIR, 1999) Adult (sub term found under age): Fully developed and mature. Typically ages 18 through 64. (CBIR, 1999) Adult Education (sub term found under education): The use of autonomy of direction and the use of experience that is directed towards self-development through education for mature persons. (CBIR, 1999) Adventuresome: (Stein, 1974, Index) Bold, daring, adventurous. (American Collegiate Dictionary, 1970) Advertising: “Advertising creativity is the practice of developing original, attention getting, and memorable ideas that meet strategic objectives that promote products and services as well as ideas. Effective advertising creativity, in other words, is measured not only by originality but also by its strategic contributions.” (Creativity Encyclopedia, 1999) Advertising (sub term found under communications): The action of calling something to the attention of the public esp. by paid announcements. (CBIR, 1999) Aesthetics: The science of the beautiful. The study of the mind and emotions in relation to a sense of beauty. (American Collegiate Dictionary, 1970) Affect: Feelings of what a person may feel while solving a problem. Example: conflict, anxiety, and warmth. (Sternberg, 1999) Affective: A way of describing the domain of human behavior that involves feelings or emotional responses, rather than the thinking (cognitive) or physical action (psychomotor) domains. (Isakson et al., 1994, Index) Affective Illness: Leads to a higher creative process. Ex: divergent thinking abilities of free association fluidity of thought and breadth of attention. (Sternberg, 1999) Affective Disorder: “Modern studies and older evidence support the popular notion of a connection between affective disorder and creativity. Evidence is strongest around a personal or family history of bipolar disorders. However the relationship is not simple, nor does it apply to everyone with a mood disorder (or everyone who is creative).” (Creativity Encyclopedia, 1999) Affirmative Judgement (sub term found under Thinking): A basic principle of Creative Problem Solving (CPS), particularly important in the critical or convergent phases of 9