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Full-Text Articles in Business

Creativity From Constraint? How Political Correctness Influences Creativity In Mixed-Sex Work Groups, Jack Goncalo, Jennifer Chatman, Michelle Duguid, Jessica Kennedy Aug 2014

Creativity From Constraint? How Political Correctness Influences Creativity In Mixed-Sex Work Groups, Jack Goncalo, Jennifer Chatman, Michelle Duguid, Jessica Kennedy

Jack Goncalo

Most group creativity research is premised on the assumption that creativity is unleashed by removing normative constraints. As work organizations become increasingly diverse in terms of gender, however, this assumption needs to be reconsidered since mixed-sex interactions carry a high risk of offense. Departing from the assumption that normative constraints necessarily stifle creativity, we develop a theoretical perspective in which creativity in mixed-sex groups is enhanced by imposing a norm to be politically correct (PC)—a norm that sets clear expectations for how men and women should interact with one another. We present evidence from two group experiments showing that the …


Embeddedness And New Idea Discussion In Professional Networks: The Mediating Role Of Affect-Based Trust, Roy Y. J. Chua, Michael W. Morris, Paul Ingram Aug 2014

Embeddedness And New Idea Discussion In Professional Networks: The Mediating Role Of Affect-Based Trust, Roy Y. J. Chua, Michael W. Morris, Paul Ingram

Roy CHUA

This article examines how managers' tendency to discuss new ideas with others in their professional networks depends on the density of shared ties surrounding a given relationship. Consistent with prior research which found that embeddedness enhances information flow, an egocentric network survey of mid-level executives shows that managers tend to discuss new ideas with those who are densely embedded in their professional networks. More specifically, embeddedness increases the likelihood to discuss new ideas by engendering affect-based trust, as opposed to cognition-based trust. Implications for network and creativity research are discussed.


Creativity As A Matter Of Choice: Prior Experience And Task Instruction As Boundary Conditions For The Positive Effect Of Choice On Creativity, Roy Y. J. Chua, Sheena S. Iyengar Aug 2014

Creativity As A Matter Of Choice: Prior Experience And Task Instruction As Boundary Conditions For The Positive Effect Of Choice On Creativity, Roy Y. J. Chua, Sheena S. Iyengar

Roy CHUA

This study investigates the effects of prior experience, task instruction, and choice on creative performance. Although extant research suggests that giving people choice in how they approach a task could enhance creative performance, we propose that this view needs to be circumscribed. Specifically, we argue that when choice is administered during problem solving by varying the number of available resources, the high combinatorial flexibility conferred by a large choice set of resources can be overwhelming. Through two experiments, we found that only individuals with high prior experience in the task domain and given explicit instruction to be creative produced more …


The Costs Of Ambient Cultural Disharmony: Indirect Intercultural Conflicts In Social Environment Undermine Creativity, Roy Y. J. Chua Aug 2014

The Costs Of Ambient Cultural Disharmony: Indirect Intercultural Conflicts In Social Environment Undermine Creativity, Roy Y. J. Chua

Roy CHUA

Intercultural tensions and conflicts are inevitable in the global workplace. This paper introduces the concept of ambient cultural disharmony—indirect experience of intercultural tensions and conflicts in individuals' immediate social environment—and demonstrates how it undermines creative thinking in tasks that draw on knowledge from multiple cultures. Three studies (a network survey and two experiments) found that ambient cultural disharmony decreases individuals' effectiveness at connecting ideas from disparate cultures. Beliefs that ideas from different cultures are incompatible mediate the relationship between ambient cultural disharmony and creativity. Alternative mechanisms such as negative affect and cognitive disruption were not viable mediators. Although ambient cultural …


Unleashing Creativity Across Cultural Borders, Roy Y. J. Chua May 2014

Unleashing Creativity Across Cultural Borders, Roy Y. J. Chua

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

As the global economy integrates and companies pursue opportunities outside their traditional borders, it is increasingly important to innovate across cultural borders. This article explains how individuals can improve cross-cultural creativity.


Intergroup Competition As A Double-Edged Sword: How Sex Composition Regulates The Effects Of Competition On Group Creativity, Marcus Baer, Abhijeet K. Vadera, Roger T. A. J. Leenders, Greg R. Oldham May 2014

Intergroup Competition As A Double-Edged Sword: How Sex Composition Regulates The Effects Of Competition On Group Creativity, Marcus Baer, Abhijeet K. Vadera, Roger T. A. J. Leenders, Greg R. Oldham

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Building on social role theory, we extend a contingency perspective on intergroup competition proposing that having groups compete against one another is stimulating to the creativity of groups composed largely or exclusively of men but detrimental to the creativity of groups composed largely or exclusively of women. We tested this idea in two separate studies: a laboratory experiment (Study 1) and a field study (Study 2). Study 1 showed that competition had the expected positive effects on the creativity of groups composed mostly or exclusively of men and produced the predicted negative effects on the creativity of groups composed of …


Enhancing Your Credibility As A Professional: Things To Do - Things To Avoid, Aaron W. Hughey Jan 2014

Enhancing Your Credibility As A Professional: Things To Do - Things To Avoid, Aaron W. Hughey

Counseling & Student Affairs Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.