scholarly journals Processing visual ambiguity in fractal patterns: Pareidolia as a sign of creativity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoine Bellemare ◽  
Yann Harel ◽  
Jordan O'Byrne ◽  
Geneviève Mageau ◽  
Arne Dietrich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Contrast Level ◽  
Creative Mind ◽  
Creative Behavior ◽  
Fractal Patterns ◽  
Ambiguous Stimuli ◽  
Perceptual Abilities ◽  
Visual Properties ◽  
Visual Ambiguity

Creativity is a complex, multifaceted and highly valued quality. Characterizing creativity experimentally is a challenging endeavor. While most studies to date have focused on divergent thinking, emerging work also points to an intricate link between creativity and perceptual abilities. Here, we hypothesized that differences in high- and low-creative individuals are already present at the level of sensory perception, specifically in the ability to perceive recognizable forms in noisy or ambiguous stimuli, a phenomenon called pareidolia. To test this, we designed a visual perception task in which 50 participants, with various levels of creativity, were presented with ambiguous stimuli and asked to identify as many recognizable forms as possible. A key manipulation consisted in generating cloud-like images where we manipulated the level of complexity by manipulating fractal dimension (FD) and contrast level. We found that pareidolic perceptions arise more often and more rapidly in creative individuals. Interestingly, less creative individuals have a narrower range of FD values that support the emergence of pareidolia. Our results show that FD and contrast are key visual properties to manipulate when investigating pareidolic perception and its putative link to creativity. They also suggest that pareidolia may be used as a perceptual proxy of idea generation abilities, a prerequisite for creative behavior. In sum, we extend the established body of work on divergent thinking, by introducing divergent perception as a complementary manifestation of the creative mind. Therefore, these findings expand our understanding of the perception-creation link and open new paths in studying creative behavior in humans.

Dreamlike and Playful Virtual Environments to Inspire Children’s Divergent Thinking

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Jérôme Guegan ◽  
Claire Brechet ◽  
Julien Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Combined Processes ◽  
Office Environment ◽  
School Aged Children

Abstract. Computers have long been seen as possible tools to foster creativity in children. In this respect, virtual environments present an interesting potential to support idea generation but also to steer it in relevant directions. A total of 96 school-aged children completed a standard divergent thinking task while being exposed to one of three virtual environments: a replica of the headmistress’s office, a replica of their schoolyard, and a dreamlike environment. Results showed that participants produced more original ideas in the dreamlike and playful environments than in the headmistress’s office environment. Additionally, the contents of the environment influenced the selective exploration of idea categories. We discuss these results in terms of two combined processes: explicit references to sources of inspiration in the environment, and the implicit priming of specific idea categories.

scholarly journals Pengembangan Daya Kreatif (Creative Power) Melalui Dunia Sekolah: Identifikasi Isu

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-175
Author(s):  
Fuad Fachruddin
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Creative Problem Solving ◽  
Creative Teaching ◽  
Creative Behavior ◽  
Creative Leadership ◽  
Creative Power ◽  
Creative Problem ◽  
Constructive Behavior

Setiap insan dianugrahi Yang Maha Penyayang daya kreatif (creative power), yang mengandung beberapa dimensi yaitu berfikir kreatif (creative thinking atau divergent thinking),  perilaku kreatif  (creative behavior) atau perilaku konstruktif  (constructive behavior) dan tindakan atau amaliah kreatif.  Sayang tidak semua orang dapat mengembangkan daya tersebut secara optimal. Pola dan pendekatan mendidik di keluarga, sekolah dan masyarakat acap kali tidak mendukung  pengembangan daya kreatif. Tulisan ini membahas beberapa hal seperti tersebut di muka dan pengembangan daya kreatif melalui dunia sekolah. Dalam mengembangkan daya kreatif peserta didik diperlukan hal atau syarat yang mendukung yaitu guru kreatif yang mencakup pembelajaran kreatif (creative teaching), kepala sekolah yang kreatif (creative leadership) dan lingkungan yang kreatif. Pengembangan daya kreatif dalam kontek bangsa untuk  menyiapkan warga bangsa dalam mengadapi kehidupan yang sangat kompetitif (global). Dalam kontek dunia sekolah, pengembangan daya kreatif dimaksudkan sebagai sebagai salah satu upaya peningkatan mutu pendidikan, karena pengembangan daya akan melahirkan superior learning. Pengembangan daya kreatif peserta didik dapat dilakukan melalui pendekatan atau metoda seperti memecahkan masalah secara kreatif (creative  problem solving),  pembelajaran berbasis masalah,  konsep dan  pendekatan  “limit to reach unlimited (dalam keadaan  terbatas dapat melahirkan karya luar biasa).

Design Ideation Through Speculative Fiction: Foundational Principles and Exploratory Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 143 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maulik C. Kotecha ◽  
Ting-Ju Chen ◽  
Daniel A. McAdams ◽  
Vinayak Krishnamurthy
Keyword(s):  
Science Fiction ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Speculative Fiction ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Practical Case ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Design Ideation

Abstract The objective of this study is to position speculative fiction as a broader framework to stimulate, facilitate, and study engineering design ideation. For this, we first present a comprehensive and detailed review of the literature on how fiction, especially science fiction, has played a role in design and decision-making. To further strengthen the need for speculative fiction for idea stimulation, we further prototype and study a prototype workflow that utilizes excerpts from speculative fiction books as textual stimuli for design ideation. Through a qualitative study of this workflow, we gain insights into the effect of textual stimuli from science fiction narratives on design concepts. Our study reveals that the texts consisting of the terms from the design statement or closely related to the problem boost the idea generation process. We further discover that less directly related stimuli may encourage out-of-the-box and divergent thinking. Using the insights gained from our study, we pose critical questions to initiate speculative fiction-based design ideation as a new research direction in engineering design. Subsequently, we discuss current research directions and domains necessary to take the technical, technological, and methodological steps needed for future research on design methodologies based on speculative fictional inspiration. Finally, we present a practical case to demonstrate how an engineering design workflow could be operationalized by investigating a concrete example of the design of automotive user interfaces (automotive-UI) through the lens of speculative fiction.

scholarly journals IN SEARCH OF THE NEUROBIOLOGICAL BASIS OF DIVERGENT THINKING

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Rossi ◽  
G. Sprugnoli ◽  
E. Santarnecchi
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Unique Solution ◽  
Cognitive Neuroscience ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Essential Feature ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Future Scenario ◽  
Creative Mind ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
The Subject

Human mind can follow two opposite types of reasoning in everyday life as well as in science: convergent thinking, as the ability to get the unique solution to a problem, or divergent thinking, the ability to elaborate different answer to a question. The latter is usually considered as an essential feature of the “creative mind”, together with Insight, an unpredictable and unexpected moment of exceptional thinking commonly reported as the “Eureka!" experience. During such processing, an unconscious reorganization process of previously unrelated problem elements is made and when the solution finally emerges to consciousness, the subject is not able to explain how he/she reached it. Because of its unpredictable and unconscious nature, as well as its connection with creativity and scientific discoveries, the definition and evaluation of insight is now one of the biggest challenges for modern cognitive neuroscience. Neurophysiological evidence begins to arise, making the enhancement of creativity thinking using non-invasive neuromodulation techniques a plausible future scenario.

Models and Creativity

1973 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 763-769 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary B. Harris ◽  
Robert C. Evans
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Female College Students ◽  
Convergent Thinking ◽  
Symbolic Model ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Female College ◽  
Creative Behavior

In order to determine whether exposure to a symbolic model could affect creative behavior, 130 male and female college students were randomly exposed to a prolific divergent thinking model, a prolific convergent thinking model, an inadequate convergent thinking model or no model on an unusual uses task. On identical, similar, and generalization tasks, Ss exposed to either convergent model tended to show more convergent responses and fewer divergent responses than those exposed to a divergent thinking model. On 4 of the 9 measures females had significantly higher scores than males, but there were no significant sex by treatment interactions.

scholarly journals Grass and Gravel: Investigating Visual Properties Preschool Children and Adults Use When Distinguishing Naturalistic Images

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karola Schlegelmilch ◽  
Annie E. Wertz
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Relative Sensitivity ◽  
Visual Similarity ◽  
Overall Performance ◽  
Perceptual Abilities ◽  
Visual Properties

Visual processing of a natural environment occurs quickly and effortlessly. Yet, little is known about how young children are able to visually categorize naturalistic structures, since their perceptual abilities are still developing. We addressed this question by asking 76 children (age: 4.1-6.1 years) and 72 adults (age: 18-50 years) to first sort cards with greyscale images depicting vegetation, manmade artifacts, and non-living natural elements (e.g., stones) into groups according to visual similarity. Then, they were asked to choose the images' superordinate categories. We analyzed the relevance of different visual properties to the decisions of the participant groups. Children were very well able to interpret complex visual structures. However, children relied on fewer visual properties and, in general, were less likely to include properties which afforded the analysis of detailed visual information in their categorization decisions than adults, suggesting that immaturities of the still-developing visual system affected categorization. Moreover, when sorting according to visual similarity, both groups attended to the images' assumed superordinate categories—in particular to vegetation—in addition to visual properties. Children had a higher relative sensitivity for vegetation than adults did in the classification task when controlling for overall performance differences. Taken together, these findings add to the sparse literature on the role of developing perceptual abilities in processing naturalistic visual input.

Memory and Idea Generation Applied to Product Repurposing

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Arabian ◽  
D. R. Addis ◽  
L. H. Shu
Keyword(s):  
Episodic Memory ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Turbine Blades ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Standard Test ◽  
Wind Turbine Blades ◽  
Engineering Problems ◽  
Episodic Memories

Abstract Many engineering problems still require novel solutions, e.g., the repurposing of retired wind-turbine blades. Increasing evidence suggests that the recall of episodic memories enhances idea generation, but its application to engineering problems has been limited. The current work investigates the effectiveness of a memory induction on generating ideas. Engineering undergraduate students in a fourth-year design course (N = 38) completed a study under both of two conditions, a memory induction and a control (non-episodic-memory) induction. Participants underwent the induction before generating ideas on the Alternate Uses Task (AUT), a standard test of divergent thinking, and a wind-turbine-blade repurposing task (WRT). AUT responses following the memory induction were deemed significantly more flexible (p = .045) and elaborate (p = .041) than responses following the control induction. No difference in response fluency (p = 0.205) followed the two inductions, possibly due to limited time allotted for the AUT. In line with this explanation, fluency was inversely related to elaboration. In the WRT, more appropriate (p = 0.009) and more feasible (p = 0.015) ideas for repurposing wind-turbine blades were generated following the memory than the control induction. These results suggest that strategies increasing access to episodic memory may improve generation of alternative-use ideas for both common objects and wind-turbine blades.

scholarly journals Divergent Thinking Ability + Interest = Creative Ideas: Exploring the Relationships Between Cognitive Creativity Assessments and Product Design Idea Generation

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jieun Kwon ◽  
Luke Bromback ◽  
Barry Kudrowitz
Keyword(s):  
Product Design ◽  
External Validity ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Assessment Technique ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Consensual Assessment Technique ◽  
Product Familiarity

The external validity of existing creativity tests was examined in the product-design field. To examine the external validity, this study adopted the Consensual Assessment Technique (CAT), by which industry leaders directly rate product ideas for their creativity. A simple correlation analysis showed that among three broadly used creativity tests (Remote Associations Test, Alternative Uses Test, and Torrance Test for Creative Thinking), only the Alternative Uses Test (AUT) was found to predict creativity in the product-design industry. In addition to the correlations analysis, two factors, product familiarity and level of interest, were tested for moderation. The results show that familiarity with the product lessens RAT-CAT (Remote Associations Test - Consensual Assessment Technique) correlation, whereas level of interest strengthens the correlation. Thus, the less familiar and more interested an individual is in the product, the more likely the individual’s divergent thinking skills will translate into an actual creative product idea.

Application of Creativity Tools to Gas Turbine Engine Compressor Clearance Control

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Godwin I. Ekong ◽  
Christopher A. Long ◽  
Peter R. N. Childs
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Problem Definition ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Turbine Engine ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Innovative Products ◽  
Clearance Control

Creativity tools are methods that can be used to promote innovative products and creative actions. There is a wide range of tools available for idea generation, employing divergent and convergent thinking for problem definition, exploration of problem features, generation of solution options, evaluation and implementation of ideas. Fundamental to their effective operation is to make use of a suitable creativity tool for a particular application and individual or team, to aid in the process of problem-solving, the refinement of old ideas, and the generation and implementation of new ideas. The principal creativity tool described in this paper is TRIZ which is the Russian acronym for Teoriya Resheniya Izobretatelskikh Zadatch meaning Theory of Inventive Problem Solving. This paper emphasizes the processes and specific TRIZ tools used in the implementation of TRIZ in the exploration of concepts for tip clearance control in gas turbine high pressure compressors in aircraft engines. The TRIZ process was used to categorize ideas generated through divergent thinking thus reducing the number of ideas carried forward for further engineering analysis.

scholarly journals Are Emotionally Intelligent People More Creative? A Meta-Analysis of the Emotional Intelligence–Creativity Link

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (21) ◽  
pp. 6123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaobo Xu ◽  
Wenling Liu ◽  
Weiguo Pang
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Intelligence ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Creative Behavior ◽  
Sample Characteristics ◽  
Subjective Reports ◽  
Emotionally Intelligent

Although emotional intelligence (EI) is positively associated with beneficial outcomes such as higher job performance and better psychological well-being, its relationship with creativity is uncertain. To assess an overall correlation between EI and creativity, in the present study a meta-analysis of 96 correlations obtained from 75 studies with a total sample size of 18,130 was conducted. The results uncovered a statistically significant moderate correlation (r = 0.32, 95% CI, 0.26–0.38, p < 0.01) between these two constructs. Moderation analyses revealed that the link was modulated by the type of creativity/EI measure and sample characteristics, such as gender, employment status, and culture. Specifically, the link was stronger when EI and creativity were measured using subjective reports (EI: trait EI; creativity: creative behavior and creative personality) compared to objective tests (EI: ability EI; creativity: divergent thinking test, remote associate test, and creative product). In addition, the link was stronger in males compared to females, in employees compared to students, and in East Asian samples compared to Western European and American samples. Theoretical implications and future directions are discussed in detail.

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