Scholarship at UWindsor
Scholarship at UWindsor
Electronic Theses and Dissertations Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers
1-1-1964
Personality differences between high scholastic aptitude-average
Personality differences between high scholastic aptitude-average
creativity and high creativity-average scholastic aptitude groups
creativity and high creativity-average scholastic aptitude groups
of college students.
of college students.
Richard T. Comstock University of Windsor
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd
Recommended Citation Recommended Citation
Comstock, Richard T., "Personality differences between high scholastic aptitude-average creativity and high creativity-average scholastic aptitude groups of college students." (1964). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 6346.
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/6346
PERSONALITY D IFFERENCES
BETWEEN HIGH SCHOLASTIC APTITUDE-AVERAGE CREATIVITY AND HIGH CREATIVITY-AVERAGE SCHOLASTIC APTITUDE
GROUPS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS
A T h e sis
Subm itted to th e F acu lty of G rad u ate Studies thro u g h the D ep artm en t of Psychology in P a r tia l F u lfillm en t
of th e R e q u ire m e n ts fo r th e D e g ree of M a s te r of A rts a t the
U n iv ersity of W indsor
by
RICHARD T . COMSTOCK
B . A . , A ssum ption U n iv ersity of W in d so r, 1962
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A study w as u n d ertak en to in v e stig ate the p e rso n a lity d iffe re n c e s
betw een two g ro u p s of co lleg e stu d en ts. One group re c e iv e d high s c o r e s on a
sc h o la stic aptitude te s t (S .C .A . T . ) and r e g is te r e d a t a low le v e l on a te s t of
c re a tiv ity (G u ilfo rd 's A lte rn a te U ses T e st). The o th e r g ro u p , tak en fro m the
sam e o v e ra ll population, a tta in ed high s c o r e s on th e c re a tiv ity te s t and low
s c o r e s on the sc h o la stic aptitude te s t.
By em ploying th e C a tte ll Sixteen P e rs o n a lity F a c to r Q u e stio n n a ire a s
a m e a su rin g dev ice the g ro u p s w e re co m p ared w ith re s p e c t to p e rso n a lity
d iffe re n c e s.
Of th e six teen p e rso n a lity fa c to rs m e a s u re d by th e C a tte ll Sixteen
P e rs o n a lity F a c to r Q u e stio n n a ire , th re e fa c to rs w e re found to d iffe r sig n ifi
cantly betw een th e two g ro u p s. They w e re a s follow s:
1) The high c re a tiv ity -a v e ra g e sc h o la stic aptitude group w as found to be m o re
e n th u sia stic , ta lk a tiv e and su rg e n t than th e high sch o la stic a p titu d e -a v e ra g e
c re a tiv ity group who tended to be m o re g lu m , s ile n t and d e su rg en t.
2) The high c re a tiv ity -a v e ra g e sch o la stic aptitude group w as found to be m o re
c o n se rv a tiv e and accepting than th e high sc h o la stic a p titu d e -a v era g e c re a tiv ity
group who w e re m o re ex p erim en tin g , c r itic a l and ra d ic a l.
3) The high c re a tiv ity -a v e ra g e sc h o la stic aptitude group w as found to be m o re
dependent and im ita tiv e than th e high sch o la stic a p titu d e -a v e ra g e c re a tiv ity group
who w e re m o re s e lf-s u ffic ie n t and re s o u rc e fu l.
Upon in sp ec tio n , th e r e s u lts of th e p re s e n t study w e re found to be
in co m p atib le w ith th o se of p rev io u s r e s e a r c h . T h is in d icated th e n e c e s sity fo r
a re -e v a lu ta tio n of th e p sy ch o m e tric in s tru m e n ts and the e x p e rim e n ta l d esig n
u se d in th is in v estig atio n . I t w as concluded by th e au th o r th a t by including a
w id e r v a rie ty of m e a su re m e n ts and em ploying a m o re so p h isticated e x p erim en tal
d esig n in fu tu re s tu d ie s, an adequate sam p le and b e tte r o o n tro l of th e v a ria b le s
D uring th e p a s t decade probably a s m uch psychological r e s e a r c h h a s
been c a r r ie d out w ith re g a rd to the n u m ero u s a s p e c ts of c re a tiv ity a s in a ll
th e y e a r s p reced in g . C o n sid erin g th e im p o rta n c e of the p ro b le m , and view ing
th e fa c t th a t m o s t m o d ern day m ethods of education em p h asize th e developm ent
of individual p o ten tial (G a rris o n , 1959), th is e x p e rim e n te r w as le d to begin th e
p re s e n t study. Seeking a m o re thorough knowledge of th e c re a tiv e p e rso n a lity
and of how i t d iffe rs fro m th a t of a p e rso n w ith high sch o la stic aptitude w as the
p u rp o se of th is in v estig atio n .
The au th or re sp e c tfu lly w ish es to thank D r. J . E . C allag an and
D r. A. A. Sm ith fo r th e ir su g g estio n s and a s s is ta n c e in th e com pletion of th is
w o rk . G ratitu d e i s also due M r. M ey er S ta r r M .A . and M r. R o b e rt C . P into
M .A . fo r th e ir p a tie n ce and u n d erstan d in g in th e p re p a ra tio n of the fin al d ra ft
of th is th e s is . A fin al m etnion m u st also be m ad e re g a rd in g th o se p ro f e s s o r s
and stu d en ts who so w illingly found tim e to p a rtic ip a te in th is e x p erim en t.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
P a g e
P R E F A C E ... iv
LIST OF T A B L E S ... vii
LIST OF F I G U R E S ... v iii C h ap ter I IN T R O D U C T IO N ... 1
L im ita tio n s of E a rly C oncepts . . . . 1
The C oncept of C re a tiv ity . . . . 4
P e rs o n a lity C h a r a c te ris tic s and C re a tiv ity . . 8
P ro je c tiv e T e s t Studies . . . 13
P ro b le m of th e P r e s e n t Study . . . . 18
H DESIGN OF E X P E R I M E N T ... 19
Selection of Subjects . . . 19
M ethod . . . 22
P ro c e d u re . . . 23
A n aly sis . . . 24
E l PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS . . 26
M ain S ta tis tic a l A n aly sis . . . 26
IV D I S C U S S I O N ... 32
C o m p ariso n of R e s u lts to R elate d R e s e a rc h . 33 V SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . . . . 40
Sum m ary . . . 40
C onclusions . . . 41
APPENDIX A R elev an t D ata R egard in g 16 P . F . Sten S c o re s fo r High C re a tiv ity and High S ch o lastic A ptitude G roups 43
APPENDIX B I. P . A. T . C a tte ll Sixteen P e rs o n a lity F a c to r
Q u estio n n aire F o rm A 44
APPENDIX C G u ilfo rd 's A lte rn a te U ses T e s t F o rm A 45
APPENDIX D A D etailed Scoring Guide of G u ilfo rd 's A lte rn a te
U ses T e s t F o rm A 46
B I B L I O G R A P H Y ... 4 7
VITA A U C T O R I S ... 5 0
LIST OF TABLES
T ab le P ag e
1 M ean, Standard D eviation and B ange fo r A ge, S .C . A. T.
and C re a tiv ity S c o re s fo r B oth G roups . . . 23
2 C a tte ll 16 P . F . M ean Sten S c o re s fo r Both G roups . 26
3 A n aly sis of V a ria n c e fo r N u m e ric al T ab le . . . 29
4 A n aly sis o f V a ria n c e Sim ple M ain E ffects . . . 31
5 R elev an t D ata R eg ard in g 16 P . F . Sten S co res fo r Both
E x p e rim en ta l G roups . . . . . 43
F ig u re
1 S c a tte r D iag ram F req u e n c y T ally of C re a tiv ity S c o re s and S ch o lastic A ptitude S co res fo r T o tal Population (N = 218)
2 P r o file of 16 P . F . M ean Sten S c o re s fo r F a c to rs A -I .
3 P ro file of 16 P . F . M ean Sten S c o re s fo r F a c to rs L -Q 4 .
4 H isto g ram of C re a tiv ity S c o re s fo r P opulation (N = 218) .
v iii
P ag e
21
27
28
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
O v er th e y e a r s , v a rio u s stu d ie s have been u n d ertak en to in v e stig a te ,
a s ob jectively a s p o ssib le , the hum an qu ality of 'feiftedness". H ow ever, due to
th e r e s e a r c h of T e rm a n and h is a s s o c ia te s on th e behavior of s u b je c ts w ith
high I .Q . 's th e te rm 'g ifte d " took on a lim ite d m eaning. T h is lim ita tio n i s r e
fle c ted in th e definition of ‘'gifted" a s sta te d in H in sie and C am pbeU 's P sy c h ia
tr i c D ictio n ary (1960, p. 319): "As u sed in ch ild p sy ch ia try , th is te r m i s m ean t
to r e f e r to a ch ild w hose in te llig e n c e i s in th e u p p er 2 p e r c e n t of th e to ta l
population of h is age. O ften, how ever, th e te rm is u se d m o re lo o sely to r e f e r
to a child who show s outstanding ab ility in any sin g le a r e a . " Subsequent r e
s e a rc h h a s , how ever, led to the conclusion th a t g ifted n e ss (in th e w id er sen se)
and high in te llig e n c e a r e n o t n e c e s s a rily synonym ous.
L im ita tio n s of E a rly C oncepts
E a rly stu d ie s on g ifted n e ss w e re review ed by G etzels and Jac k so n
(1962). In co nclusion, G e tze ls and Ja c k so n em p h asized the com plex n a tu re of
"g ifte d n e ss" and pointed ou t th re e m a jo r lim ita tio n s in co n sid erin g g ifted n e ss
a s synonym ous w ith high in tellig en ce.
F i r s t , i t su g g ests th a t the com m on in te llig e n c e te s t sa m p le s a ll, o r a t le a s t a sufficiently b ro ad ra n g e , of known cognitive a b ilitie s . I t thus d isc o u ra g e s th e o b se rv a tio n of o th e r iy p es of cognitive function ing. On th e c o n tra ry , th e ite m s on the ty p ic a l in te llig e n c e te s t
seem ed to u s to r e p r e s e n t a r a th e r n a rro w band of in te lle c tu a l ta s k s , re ly in g chiefly on th o se re q u irin g in G u ilfo rd ’s te r m s ’co n v erg en t thinking’ .o r neglecting th o se re q u irin g ’d iv e rg e n t th in k in g '. To do w ell on th e ty p ic a l in te llig e n c e te s t , th e su b ject m u st be able to r e c a ll and to re c o g n iz e , p e rh a p s even to solve; he need n o t n e c e s s a rily be able to in v en t o r innovate.
Second, although th e c o rre la tio n betw een th e I .Q . and le a rn in g i s p o sitiv e — and we ought to say a t once th a t we re c o g n ize th e I .Q . as probably th e b e s t single m e a s u re we have—i t n e v e rth e le s s r a r e ly accounts fo r m o re than o n e -q u a rte r of th e v a ria n c e in such c ru c ia l fa c to rs a s school ach iev em ent and acad em ic p e rfo rm a n c e . The
stu d en t w ith a h ig h e r I .Q . who i s doing poorly in school and th e stu d en t w ith a lo w er I .Q . who i s doing w ell ap p ea r too often fo r th e I .Q . to stan d a s the only p re d ic tiv e m e a s u re of in te lle c tu a l ab ility o r a s th e so le c r ite r io n of g ifted n e ss. M o re o v e r, i t i s com m only o b se rv e d th a t m any c h ild re n who a r e v e ry high in in te llig e n c e a s m e a s u re d by I .Q . a r e not concom itantly high in such o th e r in te lle c tu a l functions a s c re a tiv ity , and m any who a r e high in c re a tiv ity a r e n o t concom itantly high in in te llig e n c e a s m e a s u re d by I. Q . .
And th ird , th e I .Q . m e tric h a s been p e c u lia rly im m une to advances in o u r u n d erstan d in g of thinking and b eh av io r. D esp ite sig n ifican t tra n s fo rm a tio n s in o u r th e o rie s of cognition, le a rn in g , and pro blem
solving, th e conceptual b a se of th e in te llig e n c e te s t h a s re m a in e d un a lte re d . The soundness of a new in te llig e n c e te s t i s often m e a s u re d by th e d e g re e of it s c o rre la tio n w ith an old te s t, th a t i s , th e te s t m u st m e a s u re th e sam e m e n ta l p ro c e s s e s a s the old te s t. T his p e r p etu ates the o rig in a l conception of in te llig e n c e and g u a rd s i t fro m
s e rio u s th e o re tic a l and e m p iric a l sc ru tin y . (G etzels & Ja c k so n , 1962, p. 2).
G uilford (1956) believed th a t m o re atten tio n should be given to the
s u p e rio r hum an ad u lt in th e in v e stig atio n of in te lle c tu a l q u a litie s and functions.
P re v io u s stu d ie s, following B in et, had been v e ry lim ite d in th e ir in v estig atio n
of th e scope and v a rie ty of in te llig e n c e . G uilford re a liz e d th a t a g r e a t n u m b er
hum an n a tu re and su g g ested fa c to r a n a ly sis a s a p o ssib le m ethod of in v estig atin g
th e se a s p e c ts . He re p o rte d 40 known fa c to rs and suggested th a t a g r e a t m any
additional fa c to rs n eed to be studied b efo re an adequate p ic tu re of in te llig e n c e
can be e sta b lish e d . G uilford c laim ed th a t fo rty , sixty o r even a hun d red fa c to rs
would c e rta in ly be a s m a lle r n u m b er of co n cep ts than the num b er of p o ssib le
te s t s o r th e n u m b er of o b se rv a b le ty p es of a c tiv itie s of an in te lle c tu a l c h a ra o te r.
In th e fo rly fa c to rs d is c u s s e d by G u ilfo rd , 7 m em o ry fa c to rs and 33 thinking
fa c to rs w e re inoluded. The thinking fa c to rs involve cognitive (d isco v ery ), p ro
ductive (convergent o r d iv e rg e n t thinking) and evaluative m e n ta l activ ity w hich
a r e of a fig u ra l, s tr u c tu r a l o r conceptual n a tu re .
G uilford su g g ested th a t the te rm in te llig e n c e h as n e v e r been defined
uniquely o r s a tis fa c to rily . He fe lt th a t a s to g e n e ra l term in o lo g y , in te lle c t can
be m eaningfully defined a s th e sy ste m of thinking and m em o ry fa o to rs , functions
and p ro c e s s e s . G uilford continued to explain th a t on an I .Q . te s t , when m any
fa c to rs a r e p re s e n t, the co m posite s c o re b ased on a ll ite m s can m e a s u re each
com ponent only to a s m a ll d e g re e if they a r e equally w eighted in th e co m p o site.
He c laim ed th a t a Stanford B in et I .Q . o r any I .Q . fro m a te s t w hose com ponents
a r e p red o m in ately v e rb a l i s b ased m o stly on a v e rb a l-c o m p re h e n sio n fa c to r
th u s reducing th e effe ctiv en e ss of o th e r fa c to rs which m ight be re p re s e n te d in
th e s c a le . In n o n -v e rb a l te s ts th e re i s le s s dom ination by a sin gle fa c to r but
v a ria tio n stiU r e s u lts fro m one b a tte ry to a n o th er.
T h e re is evidence, th e re fo re , to in d ic a te th a t g ifted n e ss i s no t
obvious lim ita tio n s of the p re s e n t co n cep t of in te llig e n c e, a s ind icated above,
th a t re c e n t r e s e a r c h h a s c o n ce n tra te d on o th e r in te lle c tu a l functions a s ex
p re s s e d in sch o la stic aptitude and c re a tiv e ab ility .
T he C oncept of C re ativ ity
A s pointed out in S p rec h e r (1963), 'b r e a tiv ity " is not an unequivocal
te r m . H ow ever, v a rio u s d efin itio n s have been attem p ted and a r e com m only
a ccep ted . D re v e r (1952, p. 54) d efines c re a tiv e a s follow s: 'P ro d u c in g an
e ss e n tia lly new p ro d u ct, . . . ; u se d of im ag in atio n w h ere a com bination of id e a s
o r im a g e s in c o n stru c te d (s tric tly when i t i s s e lf-in itia te d r a th e r than im ita te d );
a lso of thought sy n th e sis w h ere th e m e n ta l p ro d u ct is not a m e re su m m a tio n ."
G uilford (1950), in attem p tin g to define c re a tiv ity , s ta te d th a t p rim a ry
ab ility i s th e m o s t e s s e n tia l fa c to r fo r an individual to be o re a tiv e . H ow ever,
con cern ing th e pro d u ctiv e a sp e c t of the c re a tiv e p e rso n , he c laim ed th a t
"W hether o r no t the individual who h a s the re q u is ite a b ilitie s w ill a ctu a lly p ro
duce r e s u lts of a c re a tiv e n a tu re w ill depend upon h is m o tiv atio n al and
te m p e ra m e n ta l tr a it s . To th e p sy ch o lo g ist, th e pro b lem is a s b ro ad a s th e
q u a litie s th a t c o n trib u te sig n ifican tly to c re a tiv e p roductivity. In o th e r w o rd s,
the p sy c h o lo g ist's p ro b lem i s th a t of c re a tiv e p e rs o n a lity ." A s a fin a l r e m a rk
he c laim ed th a t "A c re a tiv e p a tte rn i s m a n ife st in c re a tiv e b eh av io r, w hich in
clu d es such a c tiv itie s a s inventing, designing, co n triv in g , com posing, and
planning. P e o p le who exhibit th e se types of beh avio r to a m a rk e d d e g re e a r e
5
H a rrim a n 's E ncyclopedia of Psychology (1946) and T a y lo r's "T he
N atu re of the C re a tiv e P r o c e s s " (1959) both define c re a tiv e thinking fro m the
point of view of s ta g e s. T h ese s ta g e s , w hich had been reco g nized by H elm
ho ltz (1896) and Poincare^H iO S), w e re la te r defined by W allas (1926). A s
s ta te d in th e E ncyclopedia of Psychology (1946) no fu rth e r d e ta ils w e re given
/
w ith re s p e c t to th e e a rly reco g n itio n of th e se sta g e s by H elm holtz and P o in c a re .
W ith re g a rd to th e d efinition, h ow ever, H a rrim a n sp eak s of fo u r sta g e s v iz.
p re p a ra tio n , incubation, illu m in atio n (o r in sp iratio n ) and e lab o ratio n (o r v e r if i
cation). In th e f i r s t p erio d (p rep aratio n ) the su b ject a sse m b le s o r re c e iv e s
new id e a s by g a th erin g to g e th e r h is raw m a te ria l. Incubation follow s w h ere th e
pro b lem i s la id a sid e and no v o lu n tary w ork is done on it. E ventually renew ed
atten tio n to th e pro blem r e s u lts in a p ro m p t solution o r a t le a s t a p ro m p t
advance beyond th e p rev io u s stag e of m a s te ry . The th ird stag e (illum ination)
o c c u rs when th e id e a b eco m es defin itely re la te d to a sp ecific g o al, re s u ltin g in
th e com pletion of the e s s e n tia l s tru c tu re . F in a lly , in the e lab o ratio n stag e ,
th e id e a i s re v is e d and given the finishing to u ch es. Although th e se p e rio d s a r e
d istin g u ish ed in thought p ro c e s s they m ay o v e rla p . The length of th e se s ta g e s
also v a rie s betw een p e rs o n s and thoughts.
The above w r ite r also m ade a d istin ctio n betw een c re a tiv e thought and
fan tasy a s follow s: " C re a tiv e thought is d ifferen tia te d fro m the type of
im ag in ativ e activ ity found in r e v e rie o r daydream ing in th a t i t is d ire c te d by a
p u rp o se o r g oal" (H a rrim an , 1946, p. 110).
and events a s being p a r t of the c re a tiv e p ro c e s s . T h is o p en n ess allow s fo r
m o re d ire c t p e rc ep tio n of the w o rld its e lf , in ste a d of ju s t th e la b e ls attach ed
to o b je cts and ev en ts. He also c laim ed th a t the p a rtic u la r o v e rt c h a r a c te r is tic s
of th e individual m ay v a ry fro m tim e to tim e depending upon w hich quality is
playing the dom inant ro le in any c re a tiv e ex p erien ce (e. g. in te llig e n c e o r
o rig in ality ).
T a y lo r and B a rro n (1963) m ade a d istin ctio n betw een c re a tiv ity and
p roductivity. They c laim ed th a t prod u ctiv ity need not re q u ire o rig in a lity but
c re a tiv ity a s found in th e c re a tiv e s c ie n tis t, fo r in sta n c e , involves both
o rig in a lity and pro d u ctiv ity . In d isc u ssin g th e n a tu re of c re a tiv e thinking th e se
a u th o rs lis te d th e following a s being p re re q u is ite s fo r a c re a tiv e s c ie n tis t:
1) highly developed in te lle c tu a l ab ility , being o rd e rly , thorough and d is c i
plined in h is acq u isitio n of c u rre n t knowledge,
2) an open m ind (cf. Schachtel, 1959) w hich pays atten tio n to things w hich
a p p ear d is c o rd a n t and c o n tra d icto ry and a tte m p ts to find new p rin c ip le s w hich
w ill r e s to r e o r d e r ,
3) an independence of judgm ent and an ab ility to stand h is ground in th e face
of c r itic is m ,
4) a co m m itm en t to and re s p e c t fo r th e u n reaso n ab le.
S pearm an (1930) surv ey ed view s on c re a tiv ity c u r r e n t a t the tim e . He
quoted fro m R av aisso n : "G enius, by the a d m issio n of ev eryone, c o n s is ts above
a ll in inventing, in c r e a tin g ," and also G e ra rd : "G enius is p ro p e rly the
7
d is c o v e rie s in scie n c e o r fo r producing o rig in a l w orks of a r t . " (S pearm an,
1930, p. 6).
W ithin the psychoanalytic fra m e of re fe re n c e , Zilboorg (1959, p. 25)
r e f e r r e d to d iv e rs ity and a d v e rsity w ith re s p e c t to th e c re a tiv e life stating:
"We m u st re m e m b e r th a t th e psychology of th e c re a tiv e p e rso n i s th e psychology
of a p e rso n who w alks around in life , who lo o k s, and s e e s , and fe e ls , who
ta k e s into account w hat life i s and, somehow o r o th e r, w ants to g e t out fro m the
f e tte r s in o r d e r to e x p re s s som ething th a t h e h as w ithin h im s e lf ."
E x p e rim en ta l stu d ie s have shown, beginning w ith a p a p er by N ew ell,
Shaw and Simon (1962), the re la tio n sh ip betw een c re a tiv ity and p ro b lem solving.
T h e se a u th o rs fe e l th a t pro b lem solving i s c a lle d c re a tiv e to the ex ten t th a t one
o r m o re of th e following conditions a r e satisfied :
1) The p ro d u ct of the thinking h a s novelty and value (e ith e r fo r the th in k e r o r fo r h is c u ltu re ).
2) The thinking i s unconventional, in the se n se th a t i t r e q u ire s m odi ficatio n o r re je c tio n of p rev io u sly accep ted id e a s.
3) The thinking re q u ire s high m otivation and p e rs is te n c e , taking p lace e ith e r o v e r a c o n sid e ra b le span of tim e (continuously o r in te rm itten tly ) o r a t a high in te n sity .
4) The pro b lem a s in itia lly posed w as vague and illd efin ed , so th a t p a r t of the ta s k w as to fo rm u la te th e problem its e lf.
T h u s, c re a tiv e activ ity (at le a s t in the scien ces) a p p e a rs to be a s p e c ia l c la s s of p ro b le m -so lv in g activ ity c h a ra c te riz e d by novelty, unconventionality, p e rs is te n c e , and difficulty in p ro blem fo rm u la tion. (N ew ell, et. a l, 1962, p. 65).
P a r a e s and Meadow (1963) studied 350 students e n ro lled in a c re a tiv e
p ro b lem -so lv in g c o u rs e a t the U n iv ersity of Buffalo. They found th a t tra in in g
stu d en ts in th e u se of "d e fe rre d -ju d g m e n t" fo r problem solving in c re a s e d the
m entioned by the a u th o rs.
A study w as u n d ertak en by D rev d ah l (1956) in v estig atin g p a rtic u la r
fa c to rs w hich w e re a ssu m e d to be a ss o c ia te d w ith c re a tiv e in d iv id u als. He
u se d g ra d u a te stu d en ts, who w e re c la s s ifie d into c re a tiv e and n o n -c re a tiv e
g ro u p s and also scie n c e and a r t s g ro u p s (the fo rm e r on th e b a s is of ra tin g s
m ad e by the faculty m e m b e rs of the U n iv ersity of N eb rask a), and found no
sig n ifican t d ifferen c e betw een the g ro u p s on a fa c to r of "spontaneous fle x i
b ility ." T h is i s an in te re s tin g finding, fo r "spontaneous flex ib ility " i s the
fa c to r m e a s u re d by the A lte rn a te U se s T e s t, the te s t u sed in th is p a rtic u la r
study (e x p erim en tal d esig n , p. 2 0).
P e rs o n a lity C h a r a c te ris tic s and C re a tiv ity
A g re a t d eal h a s been w ritte n and m any stu d ie s have been c a r r ie d o u t
in v estig atin g the re la tio n sh ip betw een c re a tiv e ab ility and p e rso n a lity tr a i t s .
Stein (1963) fe lt th a t p sy ch o lo g ists have tended to m in im ize th e sig n ifi
c an ce of the so c ia l m ilieu c re a te d by th e individual h im se lf. In h is study, he
p laced e m p h asis on th e hum an p e rs o n 's ab ility to a lte r h is en v iro n m ent, and
th u s, a ctu a liz e h is own n eed s and p o te n tia litie s. Stein postu lated th a t c re a tiv ity
c o n s is ts of p ro c e s s e s th a t o c c u r w ithin th e individual which a r e th e r e s u lt of
so c ia l tra n s a c tio n . T h is tra n s a c tio n , w hich c o n sis ts of a ll th e so c ia l in te r
actio n s of th e individual w ith h is env iro n m en t, e ith e r en co u rag es o r in h ib its
c re a tiv ity in ad u lt life , depending on w h eth er novel w ork w as accep ted as
D ealing w ith the psychological f a c to rs , Stein saw the c re a tiv e p e rso n
a s having a m o re in te g ra te d p erso n ality ; being exposed to a m o re com plex
p a re n t-c h ild re la tio n sh ip which w as re s o lv e d e a rly in life by detach m ent, s e lf-
re lia n c e and a g r e a te r involvem ent in o u tsid e o b jects; exhibiting the indepen
dence of an individual w hose own v a lu e -h ie ra rc h y d e te rm in e s h is b eh av io r; and
displaying m o re self-co n fid en ce and p e rs e v e ra n c e .
Stein studied in d u s tria l r e s e a r c h c h e m ists in an a tte m p t to v a lid a te h is
h y p o theses. The se le c tio n of su b je c ts w as m ade by the ra tin g s of s u p e r io rs and
l a te r c o rro b o ra te d by ra tin g s fro m co lle ag u e s and su b o rd in a tes. The ab ility to
d is c o v e r, sy ste m a tiz e and com m unicate knowledge w as th e c r ite r io n by which
th e se su b jects w e re ra te d . The c re a tiv e su b je c ts re p o rte d th e m se lv e s a s being
m o re d ista n t fro m e ith e r p a re n t and fro m ad u lts in g e n e ra l; a s having p a re n ts
who w e re m o re in c o n siste n t in th e ir a ttitu d e s to w ard them ; and a s having en
gaged in s o lita ry a c tiv itie s e a rly in life.
A fin al o b serv atio n w hich Stein m ade co n cern ed th e p re s e n t psychologi
c a l sta tu s of c re a tiv e s u b je c ts. The c re a tiv e su b je c ts w e re found:
1) to be autonom ous in d iv id u als, m o re d iffe re n t fro m th e ir co lleag u es;
2) to p o s s e s s a ttitu d e s w hich su g g est th a t they s triv e fo r d ista n t g o als;
3) to have a g r e a te r num b er of in te g ra te d attitu d es;
4) to be cau tio u s and re a lis tic ;
5) to be c o n sis te n t in th e ir d e s ir e s fo r re w a rd s;
6) to have a m o re d ifferen tia te d v a lu e -h ie ra rc h y ;
7) to re g a rd th e m selv e s a s a s s e r tiv e , a u th o rita tiv e , and p o sse ssin g le a d e rs h ip
C ru tch field (1962) co m p ared the p e rs o n a litie s of th e conform ing
individual and th e n o n -c re a tiv e individual, and th e p e rs o n a litie s of the indepen
d ent individual and th e c re a tiv e individual. He c ited th re e stu d ie s c a r r ie d out
a t th e In s titu te of P e rs o n a lity A ss e ss m e n t and B e s e a rc h in B e rk e le y , C alifo rn ia .
In th e se stu d ie s, th e conform ity of th e individual su b jects in th re e s e p a ra te
g ro u p s w as te ste d .
The c r ite r io n of con fo rm ity fo r the f i r s t two g roups involved p erc ep tiv e
judgm ent. The su b je c ts w e re re q u ire d to say which of two stim u li fla sh ed on a
m ovie s c re e n w as la r g e r . A conform ity p e rc en ta g e w as d e te rm in e d by noting
th e num b er of re s p o n se s in w hich the su b jec t u se d the group re s p o n se to d e te r
m in e h is re a c tio n in s te a d of re ly in g on h is own p e rc ep tiv e judgm ent. The th ird
group w as given a conform ity s c a le e m p iric a lly d e riv e d fro m th o se ite m s of a
p e rso n a lity inv en to ry w hich significantly d ifferen tia te d betw een a rc h ite c ts who
yield ed m o s t to e x p erim en tal group p r e s s u r e and th o se who y ield ed le a s t.
The f i r s t group c o n siste d of 34 fu ll-tim e r e s e a r c h s c ie n tis ts betw een
th e ag es of 25 and 54 y e a r s — 17 ra te d a s m o re highly o rig in a l and 17 ra te d a s
le s s highly o rig in a l. When the conform ity te s t w as a d m in iste re d , th e m o re
highly o rig in a l group achieved a conform ity s c o re of 1 0% w hile th e le s s highly
o rig in a l group obtained 18%. The sig n ifican ce of th e se p e rc e n ta g e s and o th e r
p e rta in e n t in fo rm atio n d e sc rib in g th e su b jec ts w as n o t given by C ru tch field in
h is rev iew of the study.
In the second group w e re 24 se n io r women a t M ills C ollege. Tw elve
11
s e n io r s , m atch ed w ith the c re a tiv e group fo r field of study, w as se le c te d a t
random fro m the r e s t of the se n io r c la s s , and s im ila rly a s s e s s e d . On th e sam e
conform ity te s t the highly c re a tiv e group s c o re d 23% w hile th e a v e ra g e group
s c o re d 41%. A gain, th e sig n ifican ce of the d iffe re n c e s betw een th e se p e r
c en ta g e s w as not included.
T he th ird group c o n siste d of 40 A m e ric an A rc h ite c ts nom inated a s m o s t
highly c re a tiv e in th e ir p ro fe ssio n . On th e co nfo rm ity s c a le fth is highly c re a tiv e
g ro u p w as found to have a s ta tis tic a lly sig n ific a n t low er m ean co n fo rm ity s c o re
than 84 o th e r a rc h ite c ts no t nom inated fo r being o rig in a l.
In su m m a ry , th e se stu d ie s a p p e a r to give stro n g supporting evidence
fo r the ex isten c e of a n eg ativ e c o rre la tio n betw een conform ity and c re a tiv ity .
C ru tc h fie ld concluded th a t 'T a k e n to g e th e r, th e se findings fro m c u r r e n t stu d ie s
of c re a tiv e p e rs o n s and the o th e r findings on p e rso n a lity a ttrib u te s of co nfo rm
i s t s o ffer c o n sis te n t evidence fo r a sig n ific a n t e m p iric a l re la tio n sh ip betw een
co n fo rm ity te n d en c ie s in the p e rso n and la c k of m a n ife st c r e a tiv i ty ." (C ru tch
fie ld , 1962, p. 135).
T he a r tis tic p re fe re n c e s of c re a tiv e a s co m p ared to n o n -c re a tiv e
su b jec ts w as studied by B a rro n (1958). He found th a t a r t is t s fro m v a rio u s
c itie s and s c ie n tis ts (the la tte r , P h . D. can d id a te s a t the U n iv ersity of
C alifo rn ia , ra te d by th e faculty m e m b e rs on th e dim ension of o rig in ality ) p re
f e r r e d d raw in gs th a t w e re c a ta g o riz e d a s being d iso rg a n ize d by an o th er group
of P h . D. can d id a te s who had low s c o r e s on the sam e o rig in a lity d im ension.
c re a tiv e su b je c ts than the fig u re s which w e re sim p le and m o re sy m m e tric a l.
B a rro n c la im s that:
The c re a tiv e not only r e s p e c ts the ir r a tio n a l in h im se lf, but c o u rts i t a s the m o s t p ro m isin g s o u rc e of novelty in h is own thought. He r e je c ts the dem and of so ciety th a t he should shun in h im se lf the p rim itiv e , the u n c u ltu re d , the n aiv e, the m a g ic al, the n o n sen sical; th a t he m u s t be a 'c iv iliz e d ' m e m b e r of the com m unity. C re a tiv e indiv id u als r e je c t th is dem and b ecau se they w ant to own th e m selv e s to ta lly , and b ecau se they p e rc e iv e a sh o rtsig h te d n e ss in the c laim of so ciety th a t a ll its m e m b e rs should adapt th e m selv e s to a n o rm fo r a given tim e and p lace. (B a rro n , 1958, p. 163).
B a rro n (1963a) m entioned th a t 'b rig in a l" p e rs o n s p re fe r com plexity and
som e d e g re e of a p p a re n t im b alan ce in phenom ena and m a n ife st a g r e a te r p e rso n a l
sco p e, independence, s e lf - a s s e r tiv e n e s s and dom inance. F in a lly , the c re a tiv e
p e rso n r e je c ts su p p re ssio n a s a m ech an ism fo r th e c o n tro l of im p u lse s.
B a rro n d o e sn 't e n la rg e on th is but i t i s p o ssib le th a t p erso n s who he c o n s id e rs
o rig in a l u tiliz e im p u lse energy in a m o re c o n stru c tiv e , p o sitiv e m a n n er. In
th is way energy would not be w asted a s in tu rn in g i t inw ard o r denying i t e x p re s
sion.
In a n o th er a r tic le by B a rro n (1963b) the c re a tiv e p e rs o n 's need fo r
com plexity and a p re fe re n c e fo r d is o rd e r w as em p h asized . He u s e s the
W e b s te r's D ictio n ary definition of 'd is o r d e r " i. e. 'T h e w ant of o r d e r o r re g u la r
d isp o sitio n; im m eth o d ical d istrib u tio n ; confusion; n e g lec t of ru le ; i r r e g u l a r i t y ."
In h is g e n e ra l app ro ach to the pro b lem of c re a tiv ity , B a rro n c laim ed th a t
c re a tiv e su b jec ts show m o re co n ce rn fo r the o b ject. F o r in sta n c e , they tend
to place s p e c ia l em p h asis on the com ponent p a rts of the whole a s w ell a s th e
13
c re a tiv e p e rs o n s a r e m o re independent in thought, su fferin g g r e a t p e rso n a l pain
if th e ir c au se dem ands it. T h e ir liv e s a r e m o re com plex, filled w ith a ten sio n
w hich when d isch a rg e d p ro v id es p le a s u re . The im p u lse life of the c re a tiv e
individual is ric h and he allow s it to e x p re s s its e lf m o re in the in te r e s t of tru th .
P ro je c tiv e T e s t Studies
P ro je c tiv e te s t s have often been u se d to a s s e s s the p e rso n a lity t r a its
of c re a tiv e p e rs o n s , and to d isc o v e r p o ten tial c re a tiv e ability in o th e r s u b je c ts.
M u n ste rb e rg and M usson (1953) in v e stig ate d the p e rso n a lity s tr u c tu r e s
of a r t stu d en ts. On the b a s is of e a r lie r stu d ie s in v estig atin g th e p e rso n a lity of
the a r t i s t seven hyp o theses w e re s e t up. T hese co n sid e re d the a r t i s t a s being
see n in co n flict w ith h is p a re n ts , of having o v e rt a g g re ssiv e te n d en c ie s, p o s s e s
sing in te n se g u ilt fe e lin g s, being in tro v e rte d and living a ric h in n e r life , d is
playing a stro n g need fo r c re a tiv e s e lf-e x p re s s io n , re fle c tin g need fo r accep tan ce
of h is w ork but no t stro n g p e rso n a l s u c c e s s and accep tan ce and, fin ally , ex
hibiting a s unw illingness to com ply to hom e sta n d a rd s.
In te stin g th e se hy p oth eses M u n ste rb e rg and M ussen em ployed 30
su b jec ts who w e re outstanding a r t stu d en ts a t Ohio State U n iversity reco m m en d ed
by th e ir in s tr u c to r s on the b a sis of the o rig in ality and p ro m ise of th e ir w ork.
T h irty n o n -a rt m a jo rs fro m o th e r v a rio u s fie ld s of study a t th e U n iv ersity w e re
m atched w ith the ex p erim en tal group fo r ag e, se x and y e a r in co lleg e. Ten
T . A. T. c a r d s w e re then a d m in iste re d to a ll 60 su b jec ts. C h i-s q u a re te s ts w e re
u se d to d e te rm in e w h ether o r not each of the re le v a n t T. A. T. and q u e stio n n aire
of one group than of the o th e r. Of the 52 c h i-s q u a re s com puted, 16 w e re found
a t the 5 p e r cen t le v el of significance o r b e tte r. F iv e m o re c h i-s q u a r e s w e re
found at about the 1 0 p e r cen t le v el of sig n ifican ce. W ith re s p e c t to th e se
r e s u lts the au th o rs claim ed:
Six of the seven hy p o th eses w e re a t le a s t p a rtia lly supported. Although th e re w as no evidence th a t m o re a r tis ts than n o n - a r tis ts ex p erien c e co n flict w ith th e ir p a re n ts , th e re w as evidence th a t th e se co n flicts a r e handled d ifferen tly by m e m b e rs of the two g ro u p s, m o re of the n o n - a r tis ts showing o v e rt a g g re ssio n a s a re a c tio n to th e co n flict, m o re of th e a r tis ts leaving hom e in r e sponse to it. (M u nsterb erg & M u ssen , 1953, p. 465).
Stein and M eer (1954) u se d 18 in d u s tria l r e s e a r c h c h e m ists (ra te d by
th e ir co lleag u es and s u p e rio rs on th e global v a ria b le cre ativ ity ) and in v e stig ate d
th e ir re s p o n se s on B o rsch a c h c a rd s u tiliz in g fo u r d iffe re n t le v e ls of ex p o su re
tim e to the c a r d s . T h e ir findings w e re a s follow s:
As ex p o su re le v e l becam e lo n g e r, the d ifferen ce in a u tis tic re s p o n se s betw een th e high and low su b je c ts d isap p e a re d ( 8 p e r cen t a s a g ain st
4 p e r cent) w hile th e d ifferen c e in w e ll-in te g ra te d re s p o n se s betw een the two g ro u p s in c re a s e d (41 p e r c en t a s a g ain st 16 p e r cent).
The o v e ra ll a n a ly sis showed the 'h ig h s" achieved sig n ifican tly m o re w e ll-in te g ra te d re s p o n s e s than the 'lo w s" (. 0 0 1 le v e l of confidence).
(Stein & M e e r, 1954, p. 42).
On the b a s is of the p o ssib ility th a t the d iffe re n c e s w e re due to in te llig e n c e,
W e c h sler-B elle v u e F u ll Scale S c o re s w e re c o rre la te d w ith c re a tiv ity s c o r e s
and w ith R o rsc h a c h s c o r e s fo r a ll the su b je c ts. The effects of in te llig e n c e w e re
then p a rtia lle d out. M ost of th e v a ria n c e w hich re m a in ed w as id en tified a s
indicating a re la tio n sh ip betw een c re a tiv ity and R o rsch ach re s p o n s e s . F ro m
th is finding th e a u th o rs suggested th a t th e re w e re fa c to rs o th e r than in te llig e n c e
15
betw een th e two g ro u p s w as a function of p erso n ality fa c to rs v iz . d e fe n siv e n e ss
o r o v e rc ritic a ln e s s,w h ic h w as inhibiting the developm ent of p o ssib le re s p o n s e s
to th e stim u lu s c a r d s .
G riffin (1958) u se d th e Levy m ovem ent b lo ts , (a technique d ev ised
by D avid Levy w ith the e x p re s s pu rp o se of e licitin g m ovem ent), and in v e stig ate d
th e re la tio n sh ip betw een m ovem ent re s p o n s e s and c re a tiv ity . She se le c te d a s
su b je c ts 40 co lleg e wom en— 20 ra te d a s highly c re a tiv e by a t le a s t one te a c h e r
and two stu d en ts and 20 who m atch ed the c re a tiv e group in so f a r a s p o ssib le in
ag e, sex , y e a r in c o lle g e, and in te llig e n c e (m e a su red by The A m e ric an C ouncil
On E ducation P sy ch o lo g ical E xam ination [ A .C .E ^ J ) and w e re ra te d by a t le a s t
one te a c h e r and two stu d en ts a s n o n -c re a tiv e . In th is study e v ery e ffo rt w as
m ade to s e c u re stu d en ts fro m a ll m a jo r d e p a rtm e n ts.
Once th e Levy T e s t w as a d m in iste re d to a ll th e su b je c ts th e m ean
s c o r e s and d iffe re n c e s , sta n d a rd d ev iatio n s and c r itic a l r a tio s on i t s 21 m ove
m e n t s c a le s w e re com puted. U sing th e m ethod of 'ta n k s c o r e s , 111 te s t and
c h i-s q u a re technique a sig n ifican t d ifferen c e beyond p = . 05 le v e l of confidence
w as found on only one ou t of the 21 m ovem ent s c a le s v iz . 'fcontrol of m ove
m en t. " In th is study, n eg ativ e findings see m e d to q u estio n the c la s s ic R o rsch a c h
in te rp re ta tio n of having M s c o r e s signify '!a m o re individualized in te llig e n c e"
and thus g r e a te r c re a tiv e ab ility . G riffin quoted B u c h a rd 's (1952) conclusion
th a t "We cannot re a c h th e s e c r e t of c re a tiv ity by counting M 's ." (G riffin, 1958,
p. 136).
of c re a tiv e ab ility w as pointed out by B eliak (1958). B eliak fe lt th a t the n eed fo r
a sp ecific m e n ta l s e t, and a s p e c ia l m otivatio n on th e p a r t of the su b jec t when
taking th e te s ts im peded m aking in fe re n c e s about c re a tiv e ab ility . W eak n esses
in h e re n t in th e te s t s th e m s e lv e s , acco rd in g to B eliak , a re the lim ite d ran g e of
co n fig u ratio n s re p re s e n te d and the low in te r-in d iv id u a l v alid ity .
M ore o b jective stu d ie s have also been c a r r ie d out w ith r e s p e c t to the
p e rso n ality of c re a tiv e in d iv id u als. F o r ex am ple, th e re have been a n u m b er
of stu d ie s u sin g the C a tte ll Sixteen P e rs o n a lity F a c to r Q u estio n n aire. Many of
th e se stu d ie s have y ield ed sig n ifican t r e s u lts . T he te s t in i t s evaluation of
p e rso n ality i s b e tte r stan d a rd iz e d than the p ro je c tiv e techniques and i t s v alid ity
and re lia b ility a r e known (ex p e rim e n tal d esig n , p. 24).
B eid , King and W ickw ire (1959) studied th e cognitive and o th e r
p e rso n ality c h a r a c te r is tic s of a sam p le of 48 seventh g ra d e c h ild re n . T his
sam p le included two g ro u p s of su b je c ts m atched fo r sex , and fam ily s ta tu s —
24 nom inated by th e ir p e e rs a s c re a tiv e and 24 nom inated a s n o n -c re a tiv e . The
a u th o rs found th a t th e c re a tiv e c h ild re n tended to be m o re cyclothym ic th an
schizothym ic a s te s te d by the C a tte ll 16 P . F . .
D revdahl (1956) u sed g ra d u a te stu den ts who w e re divided into c re a tiv e
and n o n -c re a tiv e g ro u p s (on the b a s is of ra tin g s m ade by th e m e m b e rs of the
U n iv ersity of N ebraska) and also scie n c e and a r ts g ro u p s. Em ploying C a tte ll’s
Sixteen P e rs o n a lity F a c to r Q u estio n n aire (1952), D revdahl found th a t the
c re a tiv e su b jec ts s c o re d h ig h er than th e n o n -c re a tiv e group being m o re ra d ic a l
17
schizothym ic (cf. R eid e t a l . , who obtained opposite r e s u lts w ith a ch ild popula
tio n ), and, d e su rg en t. The a r ts group w as c h a ra c te riz e d a s d ifferin g sig n ifi
cantly fro m the scie n c e group sco rin g h ig h e r on fa c to rs of em o tio n al sen sitiv ity
and bohem ianism .
D revdahl and C a tte ll (1958) in v e stig ate d the dim en sio n s of c re a tiv ity in
a r t i s t s and w r ite r s . The su b jec ts u se d in th is study w e re p ra c tic in g and p ro
ductive a r tis ts and w r ite r s , w ell known in th e ir fie ld s and s e le c te d fo r in clu sio n
by c o m m itte e s of u n iv e rsity a r t fa c u ltie s , lib r a r ia n s and e d ito rs . The a r ti s ts
w e re s e le c te d fro m ’W ho's Who in A m e ric a n A rt” w hile th e w r ite r s w e re tak en
fro m a l i s t of p ro fe ssio n a ls who had published extensively in th e p a s t decade
and w hose w o rk had sold w ell.
When th e C a tte ll p e rso n a lity s c o r e s of th e se a r tis ts and w r ite r s w e re
co m p ared w ith th e n o rm a l o r stan d a rd iz a tio n g ro up , they w e re found to be m o re
in te llig e n t, em otionally m a tu re (ego s tre n g th ), dom inant, ad v en tu ro u s, em otion
ally .se n sitiv e , bohem ian, ra d ic a l, s e lf-s u ffic ie n t and su b jec t to group
s ta n d a rd s and c o n tro l. A t le a s t ten of th e six teen fa c to r ten d en cies w hich he
re p o rte d w e re s im ila r to th o se p o s se ss e d by a s c ie n tis t population d e sc rib e d a s
c re a tiv e by C a tte ll in a fu rth e r study (1963).
In th is study, C a tte ll (1963) a d m in iste re d th e Sixteen P e rs o n a lity F a c to r
Q u estio n n aire to su b jec ts who w e re engaged in scie n tific r e s e a r c h (b io lo g ists,
c h e m is ts , p h y sic ists). F ro m th e r e s u lts , C a tte ll concluded th a t th e m o re
in tro v e rte d su b jec ts had h ig h er scie n tific (and philosophical) p ro d u ctiv ity . He
in tro v e rte d stu d en ts. C a tte ll then im p lie d th a t c re a tiv ity cannot be achieved by
ad ju stin g the c u rric u la , fo r a ll th e evidence in d icated th a t i t w as p rim a rily
d e term in e d by p e rso n ality and v a lu e s , not cognitive s k ills .
P ro b le m of th e P r e s e n t Study
The rev iew ed p rev io u s r e s e a r c h h a s shown that:
a) The concept of in te llig e n c e a s te s te d by orthodox in te llig e n c e te s t s i s inade
q u ate and h a s s e v e re lim ita tio n s.
b) Scholastic aptitude and c re a tiv e ab ility a r e also sig n ifican t fa c to rs to be noted
in in v estig atin g a ll around in te lle c tu a l functioning.
c) C re a tiv ity and in te llig e n c e cannot n e c e s s a rily be equated.
d) C re a tiv e and n o n -c re a tiv e su b jec ts d iffer significantly on a n u m b er of
p e rso n a lity d im en sio n s v iz . c re a tiv e su b je c ts a r e found to be m o re self-c o n fid e n t,
p e rs e v e rin g , autonom ous, r e a lis tic , cau tio u s, s e lf - a s s e r tiv e , a u th o rita tiv e ,
s e n s itiv e , dom inant, cyclo th y m ic, in te llig e n t, em otionally m a tu re , ad v en tu ro u s,
bohem ian and ra d ic a l than n o n -c re a tiv e su b je c ts.
I t i s n o t c le a r fro m th is r e s e a r c h , how ever, th a t c re a tiv e s u b je c ts a s
d is tin c t fro m su b jec ts w ith high sc h o la stic aptitude d iffer sig n ifican tly w ith
re s p e c t to p e rso n a lity .
The p re s e n t study is desig n ed to in v e stig ate th is p ro b lem . S p ecifically ,
d oes the p e rso n ality te s t p e rfo rm an c e of a group of highly c re a tiv e su b jec ts
d iffe r significantly fro m a group of su b je c ts c h a ra c te riz e d p rim a rily by high
CHAPTER E
DESIGN OF EXPERIMENT
S election of Subjects
A sch o la stic aptitude te s t (S. C .A . T .) and a c re a tiv ity te s t (G u ilfo rd 's
A lte rn a te U ses T est) w e re a d m in iste re d to a group of m a le and fe m a le co lleg e
fre sh m e n (N=218) r e g is te r e d in e ith e r th e a r t s o r scie n c e c o u rs e a t th e U n iv e rs
ity of W indsor. V a ria b ility due to ch ro n o lo g ical age d iffe re n c e s w as co n tro lle d
by r e s tric tin g th e stu d en ts to th e age ra n g e of betw een 17-22 y e a r s .
I t h a s been su g g ested by th e r e s e a r c h rev iew ed above th a t orthodox
I . Q. te s ts a r e inadequate and have s e v e re lim ita tio n s in m e a su rin g o v e ra ll
in te llig e n c e. The C o o p erativ e School and C ollege A bility T e s t (S. C. A. T . ),
m e a su rin g sc h o la stic ap titu d e, w as cho sen in ste a d of a n l . Q . te s t sin ce i t
m e a s u re s sp ecific v e rb a l and q u an titativ e a b ilitie s acq u ired m o stly in school.
The a u th o rs have d e lib e ra te ly desig n ed and c o n stru c te d th e te s t s m aking up the
S .C .A .T . to avoid any in fe re n c e th a t they m e a s u re 'I . Q . " o r "m ental develop
m ent". W ith r e s p e c t to th e v alid ity of th is te s t , a c o rre la tio n of . 65 h a s been
found betw een aptitude s c o r e s and school g ra d e s (S .C .A .T . M anual, 1955).
The re lia b ility of th e S. C . A. T. h a s also been in d icated in the S. C. A. T.
M anual fo r sa m p le s of high school s e n io rs and college fre sh m e n and c o rre la tio n s
in th e reg io n o f . 90 w e re obtained.
The A lte rn a te U ses T e s t w as su gg ested by G uilford in a p e rs o n a l com
m unication to the w r ite r . T h is w as su g gested a s being an adequate single
m e a s u re of c re a tiv e ab ility . In th e G uilford A lte rn a te U ses M anual (1960), the
v alid ity and re lia b ility of th is te s t, w hich i s e ss e n tia lly one of spontaneous
flex ib ility , i s a s s e s s e d a s follow s:
In ad u lt sam p les the fa c to r loadings fo r the fa c to r of spontaneous flex ib ility (facto r DMC in th e G uilford s tru c tu re -o f-in te lle c t m odel) have been . 51 and . 52 fo r th e U nusual U se s T e s t. A sig n ifican t seco n d ary loading h a s also a p p ea re d in th e fa c to r of o rig in a lity (fac to r DMT in th e s tru c tu re -o f-in te lle c t model) w ith a ra n g e of . 30 to . 46.
In sa m p le s of young ad u lts w ith I .Q . *s ran g in g above a v e ra g e , th e o rig in a l fo rm of th is te s t , U nusual U se s, h a s had re lia b ility e s ti m a te s fro m . 68 to . 81. In fo u r sa m p le s of 9 th -g ra d e stu d en ts th e e s tim a te s have been fro m . 62 to . 85.
In com puting th e to ta l s c o re achieved by each su b jec t fo r the A lte rn a te
U se s T e s t an a r b itr a r y judgm ent w as involved in th e evaluation of re s p o n s e s .
T h is su b jectiv e a sp e c t w as ov erco m e by u tiliz in g a sy ste m of in te r-ju d g e r e l i
a b ility . The ra tin g s fo r th is te s t w e re m ad e independently by th e au th o r and
one o th e r judge. The m a jo rity of the s c o r e s w e re a g re e d upon by both ju d g es.
H ow ever, w h ere th e re w as d is a g re e m e n t, th e judgm ent of the e x p e rim e n te r w as
fin al.
The re la tio n sh ip of the two v a ria b le s of c re a tiv ity and sch o la stic
aptitude,w hich m ig h t influence th e p e rfo rm a n c e of th e su b jec ts on the C a tte ll
p e rso n a lity te st^ is in d icated by the s c a tte r d ia g ra m a s shown in F ig . 1; (N=218).
The te s t s c o r e s m e a su rin g sc h o la stic aptitude and th o se m e a su rin g c re a tiv ity
21
S.C .A .T. T e s t Range 293-295 296-298 299-301 302-304 305-307 308-310
3 1 1 -3 1 4 - 313 316
317- 320- 319 322
323-325 326-328 329-331 332-334 36- 33- 30-C r e a t i
2 7
-H / l
24-v i t
y
21 - 18-20 T e s t R a n 12 -g eF ig u re 1. S c a tte r D iag ram F req u en cy T ally of C ‘ “ and Scholastic A ptitude S c o re s fo r T o tal P opulation (n = 218).
re la tiv e independence of the v a ria b le s co n cern ed .
Method
On th e b a s is of the te s t r e s u lts , two g ro u p s of su b jec ts w e re fo rm ed
v iz . a group w ith high s c o r e s on the sc h o la stic aptitude te s t and a group w ith
high s c o re s on th e te s t of c re a tiv ity , re s p e c tiv e ly . High sc h o la stic aptitude
gro u p —c r ite r io n of selectio n : su b je c ts w ith s c o r e s in the top 40% on the
sch o la stic aptitude t e s t and p o sse ssin g s c o r e s below the top 75% on the te s t of
c re a tiv ity . C re a tiv ity g ro u p —c r ite r io n of selectio n : su b jects w ith s c o r e s in
th e top 20% on th e t e s t of c re a tiv ity and sco rin g below the top 70% on th e
sch o la stic aptitude te s t.
P re v io u s in sp ec tio n of th e d a ta in d icated th a t the c r ite r io n fo r th e
se le c tio n of g ro u p s be chosen a r b itr a r ily . The p e rc e n ta g e s of th e c r ite r io n of
sele c tio n w e re d e te rm in e d in p a r t a s a r e s u lt of th e need fo r an adequate num ber
of su b jec ts in each of the two g ro u p s. Since th e re w e re m o re stu d en ts w ith high
c re a tiv ity and low sch o la stic aptitude than su b jec ts w ith high sc h o la stic aptitude
and low c re a tiv ity th e se le c tio n p e rc e n ta g e s had to be ad ju sted accord ing ly to
provide adequate sam p les w hile s till avoiding th e o v erlap betw een th e g ro u p s.
U sing th e above c r i t e r i a , two g ro u p s w e re se le c te d c o n sistin g of 17
su b jects (8 m a le , 9 fem ale) c la s s ifie d a s highly c re a tiv e and of a v erag e
sc h o la stic aptitude; and 17 su b jec ts (9 m a le , 8 fem ale) who w e re of high
sch o la stic aptitude and had a v e ra g e c re a tiv e ab ility .
T ab le 1 in clu d es the m e an , s ta n d a rd deviation and ran g e fo r ag e,
23 Table 1
M ean, SD and Range fo r A ge, S. C. A. T. and C re ativ ity S co res fo r E ach Group
High S cholastic High C re a tiv e G roup A ptitude G roup
M ean SD R ange________M ean________ SD R ange
Age 18.82 1.15 17-21 18.76 1.26 17-22
S .C .A .T . 302.71 1.27 301-305 321.41 4 .3 1 314-330
C re a tiv ity 2 7 .5 3 2.87 35-36 10.59 3 .2 4 3-14
th e SD of S. C . A. T . s c o r e s fo r the two g ro u p s can be explained by noting two
fa c to rs . F i r s t , the c u t-o ff p o in ts fo r th e c r ite r io n of sele c tio n v a ry in such a
way a s to influence th e SD. Since th e c u t-o ff point fo r th e sc h o la stic aptitude
gro u p i s th e top 40% w hile fo r th e c re a tiv ity group i t is th e lo w est 30% a w id er
ra n g e e x is ts fo r the fo rm e r group. T h is fa c to r would account fo r so m e of the
d ifferen c e. T he rem ain in g d ifferen c e is p o ssib ly due to the s e le c tiv e sy ste m
em ployed in g ran tin g coU ege e n tra n c e to th e stu d en ts co n cern ed . T he o rig in a l
d istrib u tio n included a m uch l a r g e r sam p le. The lo w est s c o re fo r accep tan ce
to coUege would th u s co m e in th e lo w er m iddle ra n g e of th e o rig in a l d istrib u tio n .
T h is could account fo r th e hom ogeneity of th e S .C .A .T . s c o r e s fo r th e c re a tiv e
group and not th e sch o la stic aptitude group.
P ro c e d u re
T he C a tte ll 16 P . F . F o rm A (see appendix) w as a d m in iste re d to each
of th e su b je c ts in th e two e x p e rim e n ta l g ro u p s, th e raw s c o r e s being co n v erted
1957). The v a lid ity , re lia b ility and fa c to ria l s tru c tu re of th is te s t h as been
adequately d e m o n strated in p rev io u s r e s e a r c h , p re se n te d by C. J . Adcock in
B u ro s M ental M ea su rem en ts Y earbook (1959, p. 198) a s follow s:
T h is te s t h a s 16 o r 17 s c o r e s . . . . Split h alf r e lia b ilitie s (n=450) ra n g e fro m .7 1 to . 93, ten c o efficien ts being above . 80. T h is i s q u ite good; but even m o re pleasin g i s the fa c t th a t v a lid itie s (based on fa c to r loadings) ran g e fro m .7 3 to .9 6 w ith eleven c o efficien ts exceeding .8 0 .
F o r a m u lti-d im e n sio n a l te s t of th is kind one could not hope fo r m uch m o re . E vidently, d esp ite th e rep u ta tio n of q u e stio n n aire m ethods as u n re lia b le , th is te s t d oes su cceed . I t should be noted, h ow ever, th a t the s tru c tu re of th e te s t d oes no t re q u ire th a t th e q u e stio n s be taken a t th e ir face v alu e. They a r e c o n sid e re d a s stim u lu s v a ria b le s , and a v a ria b le i s assig n ed to a fa c to r m e a s u re no t b ecau se of its m eaning but b ecau se of the u s u a l m ode of re sp o n se to it. Of c o u rs e , any q u e stio n n aire i s su b jec t to d e lib e ra te d isto rtio n and som e check on th is i s d e s ira b le .
The above e s tim a te s fo r th e re lia b ility and v alid ity of the C a tte ll 16 P . F . a r e
fo r F o rm s A and B taken to g eth er a s one te s t. Only one fo rm of th e 16 P . F .
(F o rm A) w as u se d in th is in v e stig atio n , h ow ever, and th is involved a red u ctio n
in th e num ber of ite m s availab le in m e asu rin g th e sam e 16 fa c to rs of th e p e r
sonality in v en to ry . In the C a tte ll M anual the re lia b ility e s tim a te s fo r F o rm A
u se d alone a r e said to be v e ry c lo se to th o se of F o rm s A and B tak en to g e th e r
on a ll 16 fa c to rs . The v alid ity e stim a te fo r a single fo rm i s not given in the
M anual, but i t i s sug g ested a s being slig h tly lo w er than fo r F o rm s A and B
to g e th e r.
A naly sis
T he H ypothesis T ested :
25
d iffe rs significantly fro m a group c h a ra c te riz e d by high sc h o la stic aptitude (a v erag e c re a tiv e ability) w ith r e s p e c t to p e rso n a lity a s m e a s u re d by th e ir p e rfo rm an c e on th e C a tte ll 16 P . F . .
U sing th e a n a ly sis of v a ria n c e technique (W iner, 1962, p. 302) th e null
hypothesis th a t th e re i s no sig n ifican t d ifferen c e between the two g ro u p s w as
te s te d .
PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS
M ain S ta tis tic a l A n aly sis
The 16 P . F . m ean sten s c o r e s of the high c re a tiv ity and high sc h o la stic
aptitude g ro u p s a r e lis te d in T ab le 2. A g rap h ic re p re se n ta tio n of th e se r e s u lts
In th e fo rm of a p ro file i s given in F ig u re s 2 and 3.
T able 2
M ean Sten S c o re s fo r Both G roups
High C re a tiv ity Group
High S cholastic A ptitude G roup
F a c to r A 5.88 5 .1 2
B 5.47 6.47
C 5 .8 8 4 .9 4
E 5 .82 4 .6 5
F 7 .12 5 .0 6
G 4 .4 1 5.18
H 5 .4 1 5 .1 2
I 4. 65 5 .7 1
L 6 .5 9 6 .0 6
M 6 .5 3 6.29
N 5 .9 4 5.59
O 5.82 6 .0 6
Q l 4 .7 1 6. 06
Q2 5 .2 9 7 .3 5
Q3 4. 53 5 .2 9
Q4 6 .4 1 6 .2 4
27
The c o rresp o n d in g p ro file of th e m ean sten s c o re s fo r fa c to rs A -I can
be found in F ig u re 2.
STANDARD TEN SCORE (STEN)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 LOW SCORE ___
DESCRIPTION
A) Aloof, Cold (Schizothym ia)
B) D ull, Low C apacity (Low "g")
C) E m otional, U nstable (Low Ego Strength)
E) Subm issive, M ild (S ubm issive n e ss)
F) G lum , Silent (D esurgency)
G) C asu a l, Unde pendable (Low Super Ego Strength
H) T im id , Shy (T h rectia)
I) Tough, R e a listic (H arria)
High C re a tiv e Group High S cholastic A ptitude Group ■
HIGH SCORE DESCRIPTION
W arm , Sociable (Cyclothym ia)
B rig h t, In te llig e n t (High "g")
M a tu re , C alm (High Ego Strength)
D om inant, A g g re ssiv e (Dominance)
E n th u sia stic , T alk ative (Surgency)
C o n scien tio u s, P e r s is te n t (High Super Ego Strength)
A dventurous, "T h ick Skinned" (P arm ia)
S en sitiv e, E ffem inate (P re m sia )
The co rresp o n d in g p ro file of th e m ean sten s c o re s fo r fa c to rs L-Q 4
can be found in F ig u re 3.
LOW SCORE ___ DESCRIPTION
L) T ru stfu l, A daptable (Inner R elaxation)
M) C onventional, P r a c tic a l
(P ra x e rn ia )
N) Sim ple, Awkward (Naivete)
O) C onfident, U nshakable (Confidence)
Q l) C o n serv ativ e A ccepting
(C onservativism )
Q2) D ependent, Im ita tiv e (Group Dependence)
Q3) Lax, U n su re (Low In te g ra tio n
Q 4 )P hleg m atic, (Low E rg ic Tension)
STANDARD TEN SCORE (STEN) _______ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10___
High C re a tiv e G roup High S cholastic A ptitude G
roup-HIGH SCORE DESCRIPTION
Suspecting, Je a lo u s (P ro tensio n )
B ohem ian U nconcerned (Autia)
S ophisticated, P o lish e d (Shrew dness)
In s e c u re , Anxious (T im idity)
E x p erim en tin g , C ritic a l
R ad icalism )
S elf-S ufficient, R eso u rc e fu l (Self-Sufficiency)
C o n tro lled , E x act (Self Sentim ent C ontrol)
T e n se , E x citab le (High E rg ic Tension)
29
T he m ean sten s c o re d ifferen c es of the high c re a tiv ity and high
sch o la stic aptitude g ro u p s w e re then analyzed by the a n aly sis of v a ria n c e tech
nique (W iner, 1962, p. 302), The r e s u lts of th is a n a ly sis a r e shown in T able
3. The d istrib u tio n of c re a tiv ity s c o r e s (F ig u re 4) shows a slig h t p o sitiv e
skew but th is would no t be su fficien t to in v alid ate th e assu m p tio n s und erly in g
the a n a ly sis of v a ria n c e technique.
T ab le 3
A n aly sis of V a ria n ce F o r N u m e ric al T able
Source of V a ria tio n SS df MS F
Between Subiects 149.9338 33 4.5434
G
(Betw een groups) .2647 1 .2647
W ithin Subiects
149.6691
2209.1250
32
510
4.6672
4.3316 F
(betw een fa c to rs) 146.0588 15 9.7372 2.44*
GF
(groups and fa c to rs 144.9706 15 9.6647 2.42*
in teractio n )
1918.0956 480 3.9960
*P . 01 = 2 .0 4
The a n a ly sis in d ic a tes th at sig n ifican t F v alu es a t th e . 01 pro b ab ility
F
R
E
Q
U
E
N
C
IE
S
36
---34
32
30
28
26
22
20
18
16
14
12 r—■
10 ____
8 —
6
4 __
2 —
°
I 1 1 I
M I I I I 1 1 r i i i
3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 CREATIVITY SCORES
31
fa c to rs in te ra c tio n 1. On the b a s is of th e se r e s u lts , a d e tailed a n a ly sis w as then
m ad e of th e sim ple m ain effects fo r group d iffe re n c e s on each of th e C a tte ll
p e rso n a lity fa c to rs (W iner, 1962, p. 310). T ab le 4 p re s e n ts the r e s u lts of
th is a n a ly sis. S ta tistic a lly sig n ifican t d iffe re n c e s w e re found fo r fa c to rs F , Q1
and Q2 a t the p ro b ab ility le v e l . 05. At the . 05 le v e l of p ro b ab ility i t i s p o ssib le
th a t one out of tw enty a n a ly se s w ill v a ry sig n ifican tly by chan ce. T h e re fo re ,
sin c e six teen te s ts w e re m a d e, one of th e se findings could p o ssib ly be a ttrib u te d
to chance and would n eed co n firm a tio n by subsequent re s e a r c h .
T able 4
A n aly sis of V a ria n c e Sim ple M ain E ffects
F a c to r MS M S w . c e ll F
F 26.029 4.0386 8.92*
Q1 15.558 4.0386 3.85**
Q2 36.029 4.0386 8.92*
*P .0 1
**P . 05
- 6 .6 3
