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The Blank Page: Effects of Constraint on Creativity
Get PDFThis dissertation is about how constraint--restrictions to freedom that limit and direct search--influences creativity. Freedom is often associated with creativity, yet recent work in the decision making literature suggests that too much freedom can be paralyzing when it provides too many choices. This dissertation examines how the extent of constraint imposed on a task, when conceptualized as a continuum, affects creative processes and outcomes. It employs a multi-method, multi-level approach through three studies.Study 1 was a controlled laboratory experiment centered around a written product design task where constraint was manipulated by varying task instructions. A curvilinear effect of constraint on creativity was identified such that a moderate degree of constraint was more conducive to creativity than either a high or a low degree. These effects were not explained by alternative explanations such as time allocation during the task, or decreased intrinsic motivation. Studies 2 and 3 examined the role of constraint in 43 new product development teams. Through quantitative analysis, Study 2 found that the degree of constraint that new product development teams voluntarily imposed on their projects at the beginning of the semester predicted the creativity of their product proposals more than ten weeks later. The results held up even when controlling for task conflict. Study 3 examined the same 43 teams through a series of three multi-method case studies. Grounded theory analysis gave qualitative support to the theory proposed in Chapter 2 and revealed several emergent themes that were not anticipated, namely: assumption-constrained creativity, uncovering latent conflict, and confirmation-constrained creativity. The study resulted in new predictions about how constraint affects creative teams, and a novel framework for conceptualizing creativity as a hypothesis-testing activity. These findings suggest that while some amount of choice is important for encouraging creativity, too much can be counterproductive, which runs counter to many popular theories of creativity. This dissertation should provide encouragement to organizations that are institutionally embedded, have scarce resources, or are otherwise restricted
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The Psychology of Rivalry
Get PDFIn this dissertation, I explore the psychological phenomenon of rivalry, defined as a competitive relationship that increases the psychological stakes of competition independent of the objective stakes. In particular, I investigate the consequences of rivalry for motivation, performance, and unethical behavior. I examine these questions with a variety of research designs and methodologies, including laboratory experiments, surveys, a field experiment, and an archival data analysis. Overall, this work represents the first systematic exploration of rivalry as a psychological phenomenon, and my findings suggest that it can be a double-edged sword, with both positive and negative consequences. Further, this research suggests a view of competition as relationally-dependent - that is, the behavior of actors within competitive settings depends upon whom they are competing against, and the relationships they have with these competitors. Beyond these two broad contributions, this research speaks to the literatures on motivation and ethical decision-making, and also suggests some important practical implications. In addition, a wide range of important and interesting directions exist for future research on rivalry
The scarcity-munificence component of organizational environments and the commission of illegal acts / 230
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Stumbling Toward a Social Psychology of Organizations: An Autobiographical Look at the Direction of Organizational Research
Get PDFI recount some of my early experiences in the field and how they shaped my views about conducting research. As I describe it, my entry into organizational behavior was not at all seamless, requiring a series of adjustments along the way. Like many of my colleagues who had moved into the field of organizational behavior, I had to find a source of valued added a new perspective or set of alternative ideas to contribute to the field. This process of adjustment, I fear, is no longer so prevalent in the field today. Although many social psychologists have migrated to business schools, they are still by and large doing social psychological rather than organizational research. They often extend social psychological theories to the business context, but they rarely seek to reframe and reformulate core organizational issues and problems. For this to change, I argue that future research needs to become more contextual and phenomenon-driven. My hope is that, with the recent upsurge in talent entering the field, we can find a way to harvest more of its creativity, moving from the application of social psychology to a genuine social psychology of organizations
The attitudinal and behavioral consequences of changing a major organizational reward / BEBR No. 69
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Attributing the "causes" of performance: an alternative interpretation of cross-sectional research on organizations. 184
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