Exploring the Effects of Age, Gender, and School Setting on Children’s Creative Thinking Skills

Shah, Bhagyashree; Gustafsson, Erik

doi:10.1002/jocb.480

Cited by 21 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…As such, there was an age ceiling that limits the generalizability of these findings. This is important because there is some evidence indicating that DT increases with age (Fusi et al, 2021; Shah & Gustafsson, 2021), at least up to middle-age (until about 40 years-old; Massimiliano, 2015; Reese et al, 2001). The creativity literature overall would benefit from extending data collection to older samples to gain a better understanding of life span creativity…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender differences in creative potential: A meta-analysis of mean differences and variability.

Alabbasi¹,

Thompson²,

Runco³

et al. 2022

Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts

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The current study examined gender differences in divergent thinking (DT) using meta-analyses of mean difference and variation. The main objective of the meta-analysis of mean difference was to resolve contradictory findings in the creativity literature regarding the prevalence of creativity among males or females in creative potential. The meta-analysis of variation aimed to test the greater male variability hypothesis (GMVH) in DT. To test gender differences in means (i.e., Hedges' g), results from 213 studies (k = 1,251; N = 115,289) were analyzed using a three-level approach. Females slightly outperformed males in DT, g = À.065, 95% CI [À.095, À.034], p = # .001. Three-level multiple regression analyses showed that the mean effect size significantly varied by (a) country, (b) DT subscale, (c) type of task, and (d) ability (gifted vs. nongifted). In the second meta-analysis, the GMVH in creative potential was tested by synthesizing the results of 1,152 effect sizes from 187 studies (k = 1,152; N = 101,328). The results confirmed the existence of greater male variability (GMV) in DT, (InVR) = 1.216, 95% CI [1.14, 1.29], p # .001, indicating 21.6% GMV in DT. Multiple regression analyses explained 29.82% of variability in the mean effect (InVR) at Level-2 (within-studies variance), and 5% of the variability in the mean effect at Level-3 (between-studies variance). The mean difference findings support the gender similarity hypothesis, while variation results tend to support the gender differences hypothesis. Limitations and recommendations for future studies are discussed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender differences in creative potential: A meta-analysis of mean differences and variability.

Alabbasi¹,

Thompson²,

Runco³

et al. 2022

Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts

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show abstract

“…Sharp (2001) argues that the development of creativity in childhood does not occur in a steady, linear manner but the ability to be original in relation to a particular domain only appears in adolescence. Similarly, Shah and Gustafsson (2020) find that divergent thinking (DT)-the generation of multiple responses or ideas to a given stimulus-improves with age. The nature of the relationship between age and creativity therefore remains a topic of debate in the literature (Alves-Oliveira, Arriaga, Xavier, Hoffman, & Paiva, 2022).…”

Section: Individual Correlates Of Creativitymentioning

confidence: 96%

“…A substantial strand of the creativity literature therefore examines the individual differences that may account for diverse outcomes in creativity. In terms of the effects of gender on creativity, the results are mixed: males register relatively better scores for creativity in some studies (Scott, Leritz, & Mumford, 2004) but worse scores in others (Castillo‐Vergara, Barrios Galleguillos, Jofré Cuello, Alvarez‐Marin, & Acuña‐Opazo, 2018; Kuhn & Holling, 2009; Shah & Gustafsson, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Creativity in Secondary Schools: A Focus on the Impact of an Arts‐based Intervention

Briguglio

Baldacchino

Mangion

2022

Journal of Creative Behavior

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As programs aimed at fostering creativity in educational settings become more widespread, assessing their impact becomes increasingly important. This article responds to calls for evidence‐based policy in this field by assessing the impact on creativity of a government‐funded arts‐based educational program in Malta (European Union). A quasi‐experimental design was adopted and data was collected pre‐ and post‐intervention from a test group and a control group of students across nine secondary schools (n = 400 pre‐intervention and n = 259 post‐intervention). Students undertook a total of four Divergent Thinking tests, which culminated in indices comprising ideational fluency, flexibility, originality, novelty, relevance, and elaboration. Ordinary Least Squares models of creativity were estimated revealing a strong positive association between creativity scores and participation in the program. Difference‐in‐Differences analyzes with matched pre‐ and post‐intervention responses (n = 380), further confirmed that participation in the program positively impacts creativity scores, particularly among students who did not self‐select into the project and who had low prior exposure to creative experiences. We also observe an overall decline in creativity between the start and end of the scholastic year. These results suggest that arts‐based programs can be effective in enhancing (at worst, preserving) students’ creativity.

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“…On the other hand, given the fact that divergent thinking (DT) is the foundation of creativity and imagination, Shah and Gustafsson (2021) conducted a study on British primary school students’ creative thinking using verbal and figural creative thinking tasks, noting that students’ DT, on average, increased with age (grade level) for verbal originality and verbal elaboration. However, a meta-analysis of 16 papers from 1970 to 2018 exploring the effect of age on DT indicated that there may not be a linear relationship between age and DT (Fusi et al, 2021); namely, one’s divergent thinking does not necessarily increase or decrease by age.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining the Learning Progression of Undergraduate Students’ Scientific Imagination: A Measurement Perspective

Cheng

2022

SAGE Open

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This study aimed to examine the learning progression (LP) model of scientific imagination among undergraduate students using the Scientific Imagination Test-Verbal (SIT-Verbal) and investigated the influence of students’ demographic characteristics including gender, age, and discipline on their scientific imagination. Six hundred and sixteen undergraduates from a university in southern Taiwan participated in this study. The SIT-Verbal covered four key components of the scientific imagination process: brainstorming, association, transformation/elaboration, and conceptualization/organization/formation. The multiple validities of SIT-Verbal were assessed via a Rasch partial credit model. The results indicated that the SIT-Verbal had good model–data fit, supporting that undergraduate students’ scientific imagination in four stages from brainstorming, association and transformation/elaboration to conceptualization/organization/formation. Additionally, the results showed that the SIT-Verbal was suitable for measuring students’ scientific imagination at the university level. The study also provided abundant evidence verifying the SIT-Verbal and supported the learning progression for undergraduate students’ scientific imagination.

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Exploring the Effects of Age, Gender, and School Setting on Children’s Creative Thinking Skills

Cited by 21 publications

References 33 publications

Gender differences in creative potential: A meta-analysis of mean differences and variability.

Gender differences in creative potential: A meta-analysis of mean differences and variability.

Assessing Creativity in Secondary Schools: A Focus on the Impact of an Arts‐based Intervention

Examining the Learning Progression of Undergraduate Students’ Scientific Imagination: A Measurement Perspective

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