Creativity Across Cultures

'Creativity is a crucial topic in most areas of human life and has been recognized as a key driver of European development by the European Parliament. Whereas individual differences in creativity have been studied, cultural differences and the role of culture in creativity are largely unknown. This is surprising given the growing importance of globalization and multi-national organizations. The proposed project addresses this research need investigating cultural influences on creativity in three innovative studies. It is hypothesized, that different aspects of creativity will be fostered in different cultures and that culture can have inhibiting and facilitative influences on creativity. The project will be a mutually beneficial collaboration and synergy between the applicant’s strength in cross-cultural psychology and the expertise in creativity of scientists at the host institution from the departments of statistics, applied computer science, and psychology, as well as the expertise of international artists funded by Bavarian state fellowships. The objective of the first proposed study is to document cultural differences in creativity in five countries and to test a new theoretical model specifying the relationship between culture and creativity. The objective of the second study is to further investigate cultural differences in creative analogical reasoning in a complex problem situation, since creativity has often been studied empirically in relatively simple situations. The objective of the third study is to investigate within-cultural differences focusing on creativity in famous experts of visual arts, literature, music, and design. The proposed research addresses the theoretical need to investigate cultural influences on creativity, and has implications for individuals and international teams. Identifying which cultural factors can predict creativity and which ones limit creativity can help create an environment conducive for creative thinking and working.'