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2.2.2 Measure and Evaluate Creativity
There are a number of trials to measure creativity. Usually the attempts are
focussing on the output of a creative process.
Let us discuss the question of measuring or evaluating creativity. The mostly
used terms are novelty and usefulness.Lookingatanexampleoutofhistorywe
can find an important innovation for safety measures in cars, the air-bag system.
The origin of these systems was an idea that leads to a patent in 1951. At that
time this idea was really novel, but not useful at all. Why not? There was no
adequate sensor, no adequate gas generator, no adequate airbag, and you may
proceed with these points. It was just a nice invention at that time. Thirty year
after this patent was published the first air-bag systems were available for
customers. So the air-bag-system really became an innovation about 40 years
after its invention.
The discussion of novelty and usefulness leads to some general questions:
Novelty for whom and when? Usefulness was given for whom and when? These
measures are at least very subjective and depending on time and situation!
Just two further aspects may be discussed:
The number of ideas: Why should a large number of ideas be an indicator of
outstanding creativity? One brilliant idea may be enough!
The grade of elaboration: An excellent idea may be quite fuzzy at the beginning
and elaborated by other people later on!
A story out of history will underline these two aspects: a control unit for a
new automatic transmission had to be developed. State of the art at that time was
a hydraulic system, which included valves and elements like impedances
defining the dynamic behaviour. The main part of these controls was a casted
and machined part. Because of time pressure and the knowledge about difficulties
regarding late changes of these control units a creative engineer suggested
to develop and to build an electric device. His argument at that time was just
simple: exchanging a capacitor is much easier than changing the profile of a
hydraulic channel. Conclusion: only one idea and not elaborated at all! The
outcome was the first electronic control unit of an automatic transmission in the
automotive industry.
In which kind of a situation is creativity required? Let us discuss three different
situations as examples. Within the first situation we have to generate some require-
ments for a future solution that will be marketed after 3 years. What are the targets
to be set based on fuzzy pictures of the future in markets, available technology or
legislation? Within the second situation we have to develop an advanced function-
ality for the future version of our given product. Our company expects solutions to
be protected by a set of patents. And our third situation happens to take place only
2 weeks before an important exhibition, where we are going to present our new
product. Unfortunately one component failed during testing. Now we have to find a
solution under high time pressure.
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