Delivered at:: Department of Educational Programmes

Course type:: Elective course

When:: 2 year, 2 module

Instructor

Gershman, Mikhail

Full Syllabus Ask Question

Abstract

Creativity research is a multidisciplinary branch of social sciences. The course is structured along the three major research domains: the economic and policy domain (macro-level), the management domain (organizational level) and the psychological domain (individual level). Within the first domain the students will learn about the specificities of ‘creative economy’, ways to measuring this phenomenon, and about public policies supporting creative industries. The second domain is referred to creativity in companies and the approaches to generating business ideas and establishing corporate culture favorable to creativity and innovation. Finally, the third domain will show how psychologists treat creativity and which techniques they use to assess individual creativity, which actions could be taken to improve creativity skills. The educational module “Practices of statistical measurement of the creative economy” of the course was prepared in the framework of a research grant funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (grant ID: 075-15-2020-978).

Learning Objectives

Broaden students’ view on creativity research.
Show them how creativity is studied both at macro-, organizational and individual levels.
Teach students how to be more creative and use their creativity for innovation.

Expected Learning Outcomes

Understanding of key creativity concepts
Understanding of specificities of creative economy and approaches to its measurement
Understanding of and ability to select appropriate public policies supporting creative industries
Understanding of concepts of creativity within an organization
Ability to use appropriate creativity techniques and corporate management tools to encourage creativity within an organization
Understanding of concepts of creativity at the individual level
Ability to use creativity tests and techniques to measure and improve own creative skills

Course Contents

Creative economy: basic concepts
Concepts and definitions of creativity; Linkages between creativity and innovation; Creative class; Creative city; Creative industry; Features of creative economy.
Measuring creative economy
Purpose of measuring creative economy; Approaches to economic analysis of creative economy (industrial organization analysis, value chain analysis, inter-industry analysis, satellite accounts); Frameworks for creative economy labour and trade statistics; Use of creativity indicators in indices.
Policies supporting creative industries
Policies for creative industries – common frameworks; Supporting creative industries at the EU level; National policies for creative industries.
Creativity in groups – creative leadership
Creative leadership; Process approach studies; Handling conflicts in groups.
Idea generation and creativity techniques
Brainstorming; Six thinking hats; Mind mapping; Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ); Synectics; Design thinking; Morphological analysis; Method of focal objects; Other techniques.
Creativity and corporate culture
Assessing organizational climate; Time pressure and creativity; Idea management structures; Enriching organization and workplace.
Concepts of creativity in psychology
Behaviorist and Freudian conceptions of creativity; Conceptions of the artist (as divine inspiration and imagination); Rationalist conceptions of creativity (as generated by the intelligent mind); Romanticist conceptions of creativity (as generated by irrational unconscious); Children and creativity; Myths about creativity; Other concepts.
Assessing individual creativity
Individualist definition and assessment of creativity; Self-reports; Remote Associates Test; Divergent thinking (DT) tests; Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking; Assessing creativity in science.
Increasing your own creativity
Education and creativity; How to be more creative; Creativity training.

Assessment Elements

Seminars
Class assignments
Exam
Seminars
Class assignments
Exam

Interim Assessment

Interim assessment (2 module)
0.25 * Seminars + 0.25 * Class assignments + 0.5 * Exam

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

Amabile, T., & Kramer, S. (2011). The Progress Principle : Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business Review Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=674898
John Newbigin. (2019). The creative economy - where did it come from and where is it going? Chapters, 21. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsrep&AN=edsrep.h.elg.eechap.18292.1
Moehrle, M. G. (2005). How combinations of TRIZ tools are used in companies – results of a cluster analysis. R&D Management, 35(3), 285–296. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9310.2005.00390.x
Sawyer, R. K. (2012). Explaining Creativity : The Science of Human Innovation (Vol. 2nd ed). New York: Oxford University Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=433909
Sternberg, R. (2017). Creativity support policies as a means of development policy for the global South? A critical appraisal of the UNESCO Creative Economy Report 2013. Regional Studies, 51(2), 336–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343404.2016.1174844

Recommended Additional Bibliography

Amabile, T. M., Kramer, S. J., Dixon, R., Candell, L. M., Bonabeau, E., Bingham, A., … Ross, C. (2010). Breakthrough Ideas for 2010. Harvard Business Review, 88(1/2), 41–57. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=bsu&AN=47193009
Anthony Killick. (2019). Resisting the Creative Economy on Liverpool’s North Shore: Art-Based Political Communication in Practice. Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture, (1). https://doi.org/10.16997/wpcc.307
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1997). Happiness and creativity: Going with the flow. Futurist, 31(5), 8. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=f5h&AN=9710064070
LEONARD, D., & RAYPORT, J. F. (1997). Spark Innovation through Empathic Design. Harvard Business Review, 75(6), 102–113. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=bsu&AN=9711071080
Pritzker, S. R., & Runco, M. A. (2011). Encyclopedia of Creativity (Vol. 2nd ed). San Diego: Academic Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=368694
Sawyer, K. (2011). The Cognitive Neuroscience of Creativity: A Critical Review. Creativity Research Journal, 23(2), 137–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2011.571191
Sukma, M., Hartono, D., & Prihawantoro, S. (2018). The Impacts Analysis of Creative-Products Export on the Economy. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.8FD88C4

Master’s Programme 'Science, Technology and Innovation Management and Policy'

Managing Creativity and Innovation