The key design research questions for this research are what is the nature of creativity and how to develop it. The methodology used in this paper is finding the key research question and literating it. After that key issues were identified and research methods were chosen which are the combination of secondary sources, which were published books and presses, and primary sources like interviewing. Later, information is analysed and evaluated until the outcome is satisfied.
In the beginning, the author explained the theories of creativity and two kinds of creativity in terms of heroes: inventor who likes to do things differently, likely to be more radical and is admired as a lone hero, and adaptive creativity people who likes to improve existing practice, do things better and works well in teams. In the second part, she argued about mental processing in terms of association, cognitive barriers and training. The key skill is to organise ideas from different areas but there are still cognitive barriers which perceptually inhibit creative insight. According to the research, our understanding of the world is partial and we see only what we expect to see and ignore events that do not fit our understanding and expectation which block our creativity. Consequently, many training courses in creativity aim to remove those barriers rather than teaching what to do to be creative.
Furthermore, Henry asserted that the processes develop attitudes of people in a way which favours creativity and changes visions of businesses. The experience and motivation of each person also play important roles in developing creativity. Another issue is a climate which is open, has freedom, responsibility and tolerance to mistakes rather than punishment, can nurture new ideas and has great effect on motivation. Increasing numbers of companies are moving toward a more humane form of organizations. In the end, she concluded that organizations are advised to adopt a developmental approach which concentrates on removing internal and external blocks to creativity.
Evidence in the paper is quite convincing and well argued since sources are respected and many examples are clearly explained. Also the way the author organised and planned the research is persuasive and communicative. However, there are other matters that should be included. Many opinions are asserted in the paper but most of them are supporting arguments. More opposing point of views should be added so that the paper will seem less biased. In addition, many experts argued that observation and experiment also nurture creativity. By observing, we can easily identify problems, see them from different perspectives and it will enhance our experience. Many scientists and inventors get their new ideas from observation. Then, experiments should be followed. By doing this, new solutions will be discovered and developed.
Contemporary problems relevant to the research are new workspace design and change in organizations. Since the beginning of the 21st Century, economy and business have been driven by knowledge and innovation. The new trend is to redesign workplaces for fresh thinking and teamwork to be able to flourish and develop which will greatly affect an organisation’s culture and an individual’s performance. These include space-planning, interior, architectural, furniture and lighting design. It is argued that by redesigning office, many organizations can only grab attention but it costs them a large part of their budget and they cannot measure how successful it is.
However, these problems can be solved according to Jeremy Myerson’s article, ‘Innovative Workplaces’, on the Design Council website. Questions about current environments must be asked and the designer has to look at how physical and spatial improvements and the provision of different equipment might support innovative practice. The needs of organization and individual must be considered as does balancing the need for fixed and fluid work patterns. Other important points to be considered are the combination of workspace with public space; balancing the budget between architecture and design within; and the image of the workplace. Henry’s research supports this idea by suggesting that by improving workplaces, an organisation can create motivation which can lead to creativity. In addition, as organizations change towards creative management and vision, the paper can help set out such strategies.
From the references, it can be assumed that they were good quality. Most of them were published books and from the press with relevant topics from respected sources. Consequently, the outcome of the research was made quite clear. In my opinion, some topics should be explored more for the full benefit of the research such as creative competency and tangible example of environments that favour creativity. Moreover, there are other things that could be improved. Primary sources should be used more as research methods so the information could be more up-to-date. The style of writing could be developed to be clearer by using topic, headline and numbering. Furthermore, headers and some pictures were rotated vertically so they are difficult to read. The use of tables is to make it easier to understand, however they are too simplified. They should be in a format that separate topics and definitions so each column can be seen separately.
In conclusion, the research is well organised and clearly explained, when talking about the content of the nature and development of creativity. An interesting current problem relating to the paper is innovative workplaces which encourage further research in more detail in the topic. References are convincing and lead to a competent piece of research but other parts could be improved upon and added to.
