‘How do I judge whether it is so?’
(Ludwig Wittgenstein)
Introduction
This chapter aims to specify (i) the objective of the empirical research into the subject of creativity in organisations; and (ii) the method and research techniques consistent both with the critical realist meta-theory developed in previous chapters, and appropriate to the subject. In carrying out the second aim, it builds on the critical realist meta-theory developed in Chapters Four and Five. Having offered an augmented definition and model of creativity and resolved some of the issues within the existing conceptual framework it is now possible to explore aspects of organisational creativity with more sophistication. Specifically, this augmented definition and model of creativity enables the exploration of creative potential, unrecognised creativity and un-actualised creativity without being distracted by the incorrect notion that creativity is constructed in the very act of recognition by an appropriate group of people. As was demonstrated in Chapter Five, this opens the possibility of there being a richer research environment to explore than previously possible, and for new fields to be examined.
This augmented definition and model of creativity has enabled the generation of four overarching questions about the nature of creativity in organisations:
• To what extent can creativity exist unrecognised in an organisation? • To what extent can creativity exist un-actualised in an organisation?
• What do employees believe happens to their creative potential in the organisation? • How similar is creativity in-work and out-of-work? This is, of course, derived from
the questions of cross-contextual creativity.
The overarching questions generate the following primary research questions:
• What does an employee believe happens to their creative potential within the organisation?
• Have the employees ever felt their actual creativity has remained unrecognised in their organisation?
• Have they had a creative idea but not shared it with their colleagues in the organisation?
• How do they view the relationship between their in-work and out-of-work creativity?
It also generates the following secondary research questions:
• Do they believe their creative potential is fully enabled within work or is it constrained in some way?
• Is their creative potential enabled or constrained outside of the organisation?
• If enabled outside, do they believe this can be used and transferred into the organisation? Could the organisation benefit if it was enabled?
• Has their creativity remained unrecognised outside of the organisation? • What is the relationship between these contexts?
• What can be said of any common causal mechanisms at work in the organisation that have enabling or constraining effects on creative potential?
• What can be said of the causal mechanisms that lead to creativity remaining unrecognised or un-actualised?
6.1 Design
The first step in the design of this research was to consider the causal-explanatory method outlined in chapter four and assess the methodological requirements of the augmented definition and model of creativity. As noted in Chapter Four, the object of investigation determines the method of investigation rather than adherence to any strict doctrine prescribed by a philosophy of science or a set of epistemological rules. It is now possible to briefly consider the requirements of this research and the methods that can be employed.
Firstly when seeking to understand the relationship between creative potential and creative performance, they can be said to exist:
(i) As un-actualised potentials.
(ii) As actualised but not necessarily exercised capacities.
(iii) As actualised and exercised capacities but not necessarily resulting in a discoveries.
(iv) As actualised and exercised capacities that result in discoveries.
We saw that we can consider unrecognised creativity in all of the categories above and as such one can attempt to identify evidence of their existence in organisations. One can refer to various types of discovery and seek to uncover the relationship between the causal powers for
creativity in people, the enabling and constraining powers of the organisation and the object of discovery which can include:
(v) The discovery of an un-actualised potential.
(v0 The discovery of an actualised but not necessarily exercised power.
(vii) The discovery of an actualised and exercised power, the effects of which remain countervailed.
(viii) The discovery of an actualised and exercised power, of which the effects were previously oblique to human understanding.
We can also consider the types of existence such discoveries can enter into, such as:
(ix) A discovery can be brought into material existence.
(x) A discovery can be brought into ideal existence.
(xi) A discovery can be brought into artefactual existence. (xii) A discovery can be brought into social existence. (xiii) A discovery can be brought into multiple existences.
Finally we can consider if creativity might exist un-actualised in organisations as:
(xiv) Un-actualised powers of creativity (creative potential).
(xv) Actualised but not exercised creative powers.
(xvi) Actualised and exercised creative powers that do not result in a discovery.
(xvii) Actualised and exercised creative powers that result in a discovery that is not communicated.
6.1.1 Use o f observation, interview and case-study
Due to the difficulties investigating complex, inherently qualitative, multi-dimensional phenomena like unrecognised and un-actualised creativity and creativity potential, qualitative methods are probably the only ones subtle enough for the task. Participant and non-participant observation, as well as semi-structured interviews are appropriate for this research and provide the benefits of intensive methods when exploring research questions as Sayer (1992) identifies. Because this thesis required a significant degree of theoretical and meta-theoretical analysis before empirical research could even be considered, time for the empirical.research was limited. I decided, therefore, to opt for semi-structured interviews and observation. These techniques are consistent with the principles of critical realism.
Three organisations were available for this research to take place and each provided a unique environment for uncovering the nature of the objects of investigation. The interviews can each be considered an individual case study for understanding creativity in and out of organisations. They, along with the observation, occurred within the context of these three organisations and as such it may also be considered that the three organisations also serve as three general case studies into creativity in organisations. However, the primary objective of the research was to uncover evidence or otherwise in relation to the augmented definition and model o f creativity, hence the results in Chapter Seven are presented in terms of understanding the categories of unrecognised and un-actualised creativity as well as creative potential and in-work-out-of work relationships to these. I discuss the findings of these case studies within the framework of these concepts but do not present case studies of the organisations directly as they are not the direct focus of this investigation.
In this instance as I have been interested in the existence of unrecognised and un-actualised creativity, and in the development of creative potential. I have been particularly keen to understand the world view of those who believe they are creative and those who do not and to understand how these beliefs are justified. One of the assumptions of the model is that we are all, in some way, creative people, how then do we account for that in our own world views?
6.2 Sample
The research was conducted within three small, owner-occupier67 creative industry
organisations. These companies were chosen via an opportunity sample and therefore cannot be claimed to be representative of this or other sectors, or indeed other organisations. They were accessed via university and personal contacts and agreed to participate as the owners (and directors) were interested in the object of study. Big Idea Technologies68 had approximately eleven employees69, of which nine agreed to participate in the interviews, and was the first organisation the research was conducted within. Working with this organisation led to Easy Marketing agreeing to participate; it had twelve employees of which eight agreed to participate and the research there immediately followed the first organisation. Finally,
Popular Publishing agreed to participate about seven months after the research started70. It
67 The companies were owned and run by the same people.
68 These names are invented to protect identities; when it comes to presenting individual participants I may claim they worked for a different organisation than the one they did, as in such small organisations it would be relatively easy to identify who said what, if one knew the people who worked where.
69 The number of employees in this organisation fluctuated through the course of my time there with many leaving and arriving The exact number changed month to month but was eleven, on average.
70 This is mentioned as by this time, my ability at interviewing had improved and my conceptual awareness of