Creativity techniques

Creativity techniques are methods that encourage creative actions, whether in the arts or sciences. They focus on a variety of aspects of creativity, including techniques for idea generation and divergent thinking, methods of re-framing problems, changes in the affective environment and so on. They can be used as part of problem solving, artistic expression, or therapy.

Some techniques require groups of two or more people while other techniques can be accomplished alone. These methods include word games, written exercises and different types of improvisation, or algorithms for approaching problems. Aleatory techniques exploiting randomness are also common.

Aleatory techniques
Main article: Aleatoricism

Aleatoricism is the incorporation of chance (random elements) into the process of creation, especially the creation of art or media. Aleatoricism is commonly found in music, art, and literature, particularly in poetry. In film, Andy Voda made a movie in 1979 called Chance Chants, which he produced by a flip of a coin or roll of a dice. In music, John Cage, an avant-garde musician, composed music by using the I Ching to determine the position of musical notes,[1] superimposing star maps on blank sheet music, by rolling dice and preparing open-ended scores that depended on the spontaneous decisions of the performers. (1) Other ways of practicing randomness include coin tossing, picking something out of a hat, or selecting random words from a dictionary.

The aleatory approach is also demonstrated in the case of the process called provocation, which was initially introduced by Edward de Bono as an aid to research.[2] This method, which Richard Restak said was also employed by Anthony Burgess, aims to achieve novel ideas in writing by directing a plot with creative connections through random words picked from a reference book.[3] Restak explained that the two hundred billion interconnected neural cells in the brain are capable of an abundance of possibilities for long-range connections and creative interactions using random and unrelated words.[3]

In short, aleatoricism is a way to introduce new thoughts or ideas into a creative process.

Improvisation
Main article: Improvisation

Improvisation is a creative process which can be spoken, written, or composed without prior preparation.[4] Improvisation, also called extemporization, can lead to the discovery of new ways to act, new patterns of thought and practices, or new structures. Improvisation is used in the creation of music, theater, and other various forms. Many artists also use improvisational techniques to help their creative flow.

The following are two significant domains that use improvisation:

  • Improvisational theater is a form of theater in which actors use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously. Many improvisational ("improv") techniques are taught in standard drama classes. The basic skills of listening, clarity, confidence, and performing instinctively and spontaneously are considered important skills for actors to develop.[5]
  • Free improvisation is real-time composition. Musicians of all kinds improvise ("improv") music; such improvised music is not limited to a particular genre. Two contemporary musicians that use free improvisation are Anthony Braxton and Cecil Taylor.

In problem solving
Main article: Creative problem solving

In problem-solving contexts, the random-word creativity technique is perhaps the simplest method. A person confronted with a problem is presented with a randomly generated word, in the hopes of a solution arising from any associations between the word and the problem. A random image, sound, or article can be used instead of a random word as a kind of creativity goad or provocation.[6][7]

There are many problem-solving tools and methodologies to support creativity:

In project management

For project management purposes, group creativity techniques are creativity techniques used by a team in the course of executing a project. Some relevant techniques are brainstorming, the nominal group technique, the Delphi technique, idea/mind mapping, the affinity diagram, and multicriteria decision analysis.[8] These techniques are referenced in the Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge.[9]

Group creativity techniques can be used in a sequence; for example:[9]

  1. Gather requirements using idea/mind mapping
  2. Continue generating ideas by brainstorming
  3. Construct an affinity diagram based on the generated ideas
  4. Identify the most important ideas by applying the nominal group technique
  5. Obtain several rounds of independent feedback using the Delphi technique

Affecting factors

Distraction

Multiple studies have confirmed that distraction actually increases creative cognition.[10] One such study done by Jonathan Schooler found that non-demanding distractions improve performance on a classic creativity task called the UUT (Unusual Uses Task) in which the subject must come up with as many possible uses for a common object. The results confirmed that decision-related neural processes occur during moments of unconscious thought while a person engages in a non-demanding task. The research showed that while distracted a subject isn’t maintaining one thought for a particularly long time, which in turn allows different ideas to float in and out of one’s consciousness—this sort of associative process leads to creative incubation.[11]

Ambient noise is another variable that is conducive to distraction. It has been proven that a moderate level of noise actually heightens creativity.[12] Professor Ravi Mehta conducted a study to research the degree of distraction induced by various noise levels and their effect on creativity. The series of experiments show that a moderate level of ambient noise (70 dB) produces just enough distraction to induce processing disfluency, which leads to abstract cognition. These higher construal levels caused by moderate levels of noise consequently enhance creativity.[12]

Walking

In 2014, a study found that walking increased creativity.[13]

Sleep and relaxation

Some advocate enhancing creativity by taking advantage of hypnagogia, the transition from wakefulness to sleep, using techniques such as lucid dreaming. One technique used by Salvador Dalí was to drift off to sleep in an armchair with a set of keys in his hand; when he fell completely asleep, the keys would fall and wake him up, allowing him to recall his mind's subconscious imaginings.[14] Thomas Edison used the same technique, with ball bearings.[15]

Meditation

A study[16] from 2014 conducted by researchers in China and the US, including the psychologist Michael Posner found that performing a short 30 minute meditation session each day, for seven days, was sufficient to improve verbal and visual creativity, as measured by the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, due to the positive effects of meditation on emotional regulation. The same researchers[17] also showed in 2015 that short term meditation training could also improve insight-based problem solving (the type commonly associated with an "Ah-ha", or "eureka" type moment of realization) as measured by the Remote Associates Test.

See also

References
  1. Mikics, David (2007). A New Handbook of Literary Terms. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 6. ISBN 9780300106367.
  2. Collins, Hilary (2017). Creative Research: The Theory and Practice of Research for the Creative Industries. Laussane: AVA Publishing SA. p. 30. ISBN 9782940411085.
  3. Bundy, Wayne (2002). Innovation, Creativity, and Discovery in Modern Organizations. Westport, CT: Quorum Books. p. 91. ISBN 978-1567205695.
  4. Improvisation | Define Improvisation at Dictionary.com
  5. Yorton, Tom. "The art of improv: How to make decisions without a script". Archived from the original on July 6, 2008.
  6. "More On Idea Generation Tools and Techniques. IdeaFlow: Discussion about innovation and creativity - new products, strategy, open innovation, commercialization of technologies..." Archived from the original on 2014-02-24. Retrieved 2007-06-20.
  7. "Idea Generation, Creativity and Incentives" (PDF). Mitsloan.mit.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-05-20. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
  8. Boral, Sumanta (2016). Ace the PMI-ACP exam: a quick reference guide for the busy professional. New York: Apress. p. 225. doi:10.1007/978-1-4842-2526-4. ISBN 9781484225257. OCLC 967511997. S2CID 27902062.
  9. "Group creativity techniques to collect requirements". projectmanagement.com. 13 July 2012. Archived from the original on 30 March 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  10. "How To Waste Time Properly - Issue 7: Waste - Nautilus". Nautilus. 2013-11-14. Archived from the original on 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2016-09-30.
  11. Baird, Benjamin; Smallwood, Jonathan; Mrazek, Michael D.; Kam, Julia W. Y.; Franklin, Michael S.; Schooler, Jonathan W. (1 October 2012). "Inspired by Distraction: Mind Wandering Facilitates Creative Incubation". Psychological Science. 23 (10): 1117–1122. doi:10.1177/0956797612446024. ISSN 0956-7976. PMID 22941876. S2CID 46281941.
  12. Mehta, Ravi; Zhu, Rui (Juliet); Cheema, Amar (2012). "Is Noise Always Bad? Exploring the Effects of Ambient Noise on Creative Cognition". Journal of Consumer Research. 39 (4): 784–799. doi:10.1086/665048. JSTOR 10.1086/665048.
  13. Oppezzo, Marily; Schwartz, Daniel L. (2014). "Give your ideas some legs: The positive effect of walking on creative thinking". Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. 40 (4): 1142–1152. doi:10.1037/a0036577. PMID 24749966. S2CID 11962777.
  14. "Sleep without Sleeping « Almost Bohemian". almostbohemian.com. Archived from the original on 2011-05-13.
  15. "Geeks Take Their Cue from Thomas Edison's Napping Technique". Wired. 2008-05-19.
  16. hDing, Xiaoqian; Tang, Yi-Yuan (2014). "Improving creativity performance by short-term meditation". Behavioral and Brain Functions. 10 (9): 9. doi:10.1186/1744-9081-10-9. PMC 3994657. PMID 24645871.
  17. Ding, Xiaoqian; Tang, Yi-Yuan (2015). "Short-term meditation modulates brain activity of insight evoked with solution cue". Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. 10 (1): 43–49. doi:10.1093/scan/nsu032. PMC 4994853. PMID 24532700.
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