Creative Construct and Theorist Paper

Creative Construct and Theorist Paper

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Introduction

Creativity is a personal ability of the individual, and not all human beings have developed creative abilities, and it represents the generation of new and useful ideas. Generally, the factors affecting creativity fall into the cognitive, affective and environmental categories Creativity and learning are closely linked whereby the development of human capabilities and change in the way of thinking to enhance creativity. Creative people gain experiences and insights after education and training, but they also need to be original and flexible in their way of thinking (Leggett, 2017). Research has also focused on the relationship between individual creativity and organizational innovation, and the psychological account of creativity is applicable in understanding creativity in visual arts education. Amabile's social psychology of creativity and Vygotsky’s theory of creativity is relevant in visual arts to foster and support creativity in children.
Theories of creativity and visual arts education

In social psychology of creativity, there is a focus on the influence of social and environmental factors on creativity, whereby the factors can enhance or hinder creativity in some people. This is relevant in the visual arts programs since teachers can create conducive environments to foster creativity. Such factors can be mundane, but considering those social, environmental factors that are significant can help to deal with the constraints of creativity. The interplay of social/environmental factors with the cognitive abilities and personality characteristics that cannot be ignored if teaching and learning are to enhance the creative process.

Even though it is possible to modify some social or environmental influences on creativity, there has been little research on the social psychology of creativity, partly because researchers have focused on traits and personal differences to understand creativity. Researchers have mostly focused on what traits make a person creative while downplaying the situations that enhance or hinder creativity. The topic of creativity has been studied in its multiple dimensions and complexity, and some researchers like Teresa Amabile assume that their social and cultural environment influences creative people.

Amabile's research highlighted that there is a strong relationship between motivation and creativity, which shows that ensuring that conducive cultural and social environments increase creativity. The researcher supposed that solving problems of nature requires an environment that meets the necessary conditions for people to commit to finding innovative solutions find a plausible and innovative solution regardless of their personal experiences (Amabile, 1983). It is common for creative people to have a high level of intrinsic motivation; but, the extrinsic limitations linked to the socio-cultural environment can hinder creativity. The implication of this is that personal and socio-cultural characteristics converge to favor or hinder creativity and innovation.

Extrinsic motivation must be informative and empower people to develop their thinking autonomously and freely, in the best possible way. Motivational synergy is a social factor that influences performance, productivity, and an individual’s persistence and fostering motivation then improves creativity (Amabile, 1983). There is a risk that controlling and manipulating the performance of people is counterproductive to creativity. At the same time, challenges are harmonizing the influence of the socio-cultural environment with creative activities, for both individuals and groups. Knowing how to modify a context that hinders innovation is beneficial to develop creativity in children.

Children who are self-motivated and have a positive attitude are more willing to learn and, may become more creative over time as they do not let failure define them. The presence of individuals and favorable environments for creativity are important since creative people then take opportunities to engage in creative activities. As such, when it is possible for individuals to recognize their actions influence creativity, providing opportunities for the children to be creative will benefit them. Nonetheless, even when the socio-cultural environments foster creativity, individual psychological and cognitive characteristics, cannot be ignored when choosing creative activities.

Vygotsky focused on language, thoughts and the development of functions, psychological aspects and the role of art in education and creativity. Vygotsky worked and taught to children with mental and developmental issues, and he proposed that language and thought are linked (Lindqvist, 2003). He further suggested that the acquisition process and use of language were mediated by social interaction, which facilitates the development of abilities and functions. This is relevant in fostering creativity since psychology may be used to improve the creative process and helps to focus on what is appropriate to improve creativity. In any case, the development of thoughts is closely linked to the development of language, whereby communication mediates the psychological activities, which then influence intellectual development.

To Vygotsky, imagination is the foundation of all creative activities and is manifested in cultural, artistic, scientific and technical creations. The creative activity of man allows him to focus on the future since human beings can create and transform their present depending on their imaginations (Lindqvist, 2003). When there are favorable environments and opportunities to enrich children’s experiences, while allowing and encouraging them to take risks without the fear of making mistakes motivates them to appreciate the benefits of imagination and creativity the human brain can combine elements of reality and create new ideas concepts and works, thereby encouraging the expression of creativity, motivates the children to make their creations.

Creativity in a complex cognitive and effective process which needs to be developed, but also requires a mediation process where the teacher and other factors or tools intervene, for its development of creative thinking. This implies that a person can develop their creative potential, but there is a need to take into account the stages of human development in learning since creativity, in children also depends on learning and mediated activities that enhance creativity.