TY - JOUR
T1 - Why and how do creative thinking techniques work?
T2 - Trading off originality and appropriateness to make more creative advertising
AU - Kilgour, Mark
AU - Koslow, Scott
PY - 2009/8
Y1 - 2009/8
N2 - The research examines the effects of divergent and convergent creative thinking techniques on creative ideation processes. To analyze these effects an experiment is undertaken on advertising creatives, account executives, and students. Results demonstrate that divergent thinking techniques improve the idea originality of account executives, but not creatives. Alternatively, creatives produce more appropriate ideas by using convergent thinking techniques, yet account executive performance is clearly harmed by them. Few effects are seen on the student control group, who lack both knowledge of techniques and the domain. The findings suggest that creativity techniques are not a one-size-fits-all proposition but need to be tailored to the person and the situation in which they are applied. Implications for researchers and marketing managers are discussed.
AB - The research examines the effects of divergent and convergent creative thinking techniques on creative ideation processes. To analyze these effects an experiment is undertaken on advertising creatives, account executives, and students. Results demonstrate that divergent thinking techniques improve the idea originality of account executives, but not creatives. Alternatively, creatives produce more appropriate ideas by using convergent thinking techniques, yet account executive performance is clearly harmed by them. Few effects are seen on the student control group, who lack both knowledge of techniques and the domain. The findings suggest that creativity techniques are not a one-size-fits-all proposition but need to be tailored to the person and the situation in which they are applied. Implications for researchers and marketing managers are discussed.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=70350714552&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s11747-009-0133-5
DO - 10.1007/s11747-009-0133-5
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:70350714552
VL - 37
SP - 298
EP - 309
JO - Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science
JF - Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science
SN - 0092-0703
IS - 3
ER -