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Abstract

Reviews the literature relating children's creativity to the degree of autonomy experienced in teacher– and parent–child relationships. Findings indicate that the amount of independence that children experience in their relationships with teachers and parents does influence their creative ability. In general, freedom seems to enhance creativity, but there are indications that the relationship is curvilinear, and the optimum amount of freedom may depend on the particular task and type of creativity under consideration. The relationship between parent–child warmth and children's creativity is less clear. The mixed results may be indicative of a curvilinear relationship that varies with the extremes of creativity under consideration as well as the particular task used to measure creativity. It is concluded that (1) more precision is needed in defining what is meant by freedom, both from teachers and parents; (2) research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which freedom leads to greater creativity, whether by producing greater independence or through ideational playfulness; and (3) new research should examine which particular aspects of freedom influence specific types of creativity and how these variables interact with each other and with the characteristics children bring to their life situations. (3 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Futonomq crnd Cracrtivi tp
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In recentyears millions of words have been written ins'-:--::--:
anyone who will listen how to raise creative children. One
theme runs through them all: freedom. Taylor (1973) sug-
gested teachers should leave students alone; Miel (1961)
wrote that students need freedom to rebel; and Moustakas
(1967), that they need freedom not to conform' Torrance and
Myers (1970) exhorted teachers to give students freedom to
experiment with new ideas and behavior. Rogers (1959)
posited psychological f reedom as one of the conditions
necessary for fostering creativity. MacKinnon (1962) urged
teachers and parents to use caution in setting limits.
One rationale for recommending that children be given
freedom is based on the nature of creativity itself : since it
involves producing something that is new and different, it
would seem to demand a degree of independence in the
creator. The assumption is made that children learn to act
independently when they are given the freedom to do so and
that they will carry this independent attitude to adulthood. This
reasoning is supported by the observation that creative indi'
viduals are more independent than their peers (e.g., Barron,
1963, MacKinnon, 1962) and by MacKinnon's observation
(1962) that creative architects more often than their peers
reportthatunusualfreedom was grantedto them intheir early
leans\1\err panes\s.
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their re\ationships with adu\ts grow up to be more creatrve than
their peers. There is, however, a sizable body of literature
relating children's creativity to the degree of autonomy expe.
Volume 16 Number 1 First Quarter
I
\
The Journal of Creative Behavior
PRRNT-CHItD
RLRTIONS
Contro l-R u to no m v
rienced in teacher-child and Parent-child relationships'
Using a wide variety of measures of independence and
creativity, several stuiies have found that greater freedom is
related io higher levels of creativity in children (Balagtas'
1969; Dewinj a fuft, 1973; Domino, 1979; Dreyer e' Wells'
tgO6; fttinge-r, 1965; Harrison, 1973; Nuttall' 1970;Weisberg
g Spring"i 1961) and adolescents (Datta & Parloff' 1967;
Dauw, 1566; Cetr"ls t' Jackson, 1961; Halpin' Payne t' Ellett'
1973; Nichols, 1964). However, the relationships in these
studies are not always very strong' Several used many
measures, and the number that reached significance was
sometimes only slightly greater than chance' At the same
time, only one siudy found restrictive practices to be positively
related to creativity (Orinstein, 1962) and four found no rela-
tionship (Reid, 1972; Schwartz, 1976; Sheldon' 1968; Silver'
berg, 1971 ).
o-ntytwostudiesactuallyobservedparent.childinteractions
(Aldous, 1975; Busse , 1967). Both indicate that a curvilinear
ielationship is likely and that the kind of control and the task
given the children may also be important variables'
Straus and Straus ( 1968), taking a somewhat different
approach, compared children's creative ability in Bombay and
Minneapolis. The children from Bombay, where family struc-
tures demand more conformity, were less creative' Weisberg
and Springer (1961) found that lack of domination' coupled
with parenial expressiveness, was related to creativity in bright
grade-four pupilt, suggesting that other parental variables
interact with control in influencing children's creative ability.
Parental absence has been considered evidence of inde-
pendence from parents. Only one such study concerned itself
with children: Schaefer (1970) reported that four of ten crea-
tive adolescent girls studied in depth came from broken
homes. However, this is a rather drastic steP to take to encour-
age children's creativity, and it is doubtful that it is always
successful.
A somewhat less extreme form of parental absence is found
in homes where both parents work; it is likely that these chil'
dren have more freedom than their peers' Dewing and Taft
(1973), Cetzels ai-rd iackson (1961) and Schaefer (1970) all
report the creative subjects were more likely then the non-
creatives to have two working parents. only Aldous (1973)
did not find children's creativity to be influenced by the
mothers' work status.
L_ ;T
motionol Ties
Ser"B@loted fFacts
TR(HR-PUPIL
RLIlTIONS
Autonomy and Creativity in Children
MacKinnon (1962) has pointed out that the counterpart to
greater autonomy may be a lack of close emotional ties
between parents and children. No consistent pattern of results
has emerged from research into this question. Several studies
used comparison groups with highly distinct differences in
their levels of creative ability; they found a negative relation-
ship between parentalwarmth and creative achievement
(Aldous, 1975; Orinstein, 1962; Schaefer, 1970; Schaefer t,
Anastasi, 1968). Other studies used comparison groups that
were less distinct in their creative ability; they found a positive
relationship between parentalwarmth or acceptance and crea-
tivity (Nuttall, i970; Silverberg, 1971; Weisberg t, Springer,
1961) or no relationship (Busse, 1967; Datta E Parloff, 1967;
Nichols, 1964: Sheldon, 1968). These mixed results may indi-
cate that there is no relationship between creativity and paren-
tal warmth, or they may lead us to believe that the effect of the
relationship depends on the degree of creative ability being
studied and the manner in which it is measured. Two reports
lend credence to this latter interpretation. Both Aldous (1975)
and Silverberg (1971) studied four levels of creative ability:
they found a nonlinear relationship, with both high and low
levels of warmth enhancing children's scores.
A number of studies raise the possibility that the effects of
parent-child relationships depend on the sex of the parent
andf or child under consideration. The most common finding
is f or father-daughter relationships (Anastasi t, Schaefer,
i 969; Dauw, 1966; Harrison, 1973; Weisberg & Springer,
1961) or father-child relations (Aldous, 1975; Datta t Parloff,
1967; Nuttall, 1970; Silverberg, 1971 ) to be more implicated in
children's creativity than mother.daughter or mother.child
relationships. A few found the mothers' relationship more
important (Balagtas, 1969; Dewing & Taft, 1973; Domino,
1979; Dreyer , Wells, 1966) and in the Halpin et al. study
(1973), boys but not girls were influenced by both parents.
Schaefer and Anastasi ( i 968) found creative-artistic boys had
closer relationships with their mothers than their fathers, while
creative-scientific boys were closer to their fathers, again indi-
cating the importance of the type of creativity under consider-
ation.
The research summarized above does support the idea of a
link between autonomy in parent-child relations and children's
creativity. Other studies have looked at the relationship
between the degree of autonomy children have in school and
their creative ability. The outcomes, while mixed, do Iend some
60
Taochrnq Stglo
Open du(otion
The Joumal of Creative Behavior
support to the belief that autonomy and creativity are linked'
tiabtree ( 1967) showed that a program structured by both
pupils and teachers resulted in greater creativity than a similar
program planned entirely by the teacher. When comPared to
highly controlling teachers, low control teachers were found to
have more creative pupils on verbal but not figural tests
(Wodtke & Wallen, 1965). White and Owen (1970) and Tor'
rance (1965) found self-evaluation or no evaluation led to
higher creativity scores than peer or teacher evaluation' War-
drop et al. (1969) found pupils of facilitative teachers were
more creative than those of nonfacilitative teachers.
Three studies compared the creative abilities of pupils
taught by direct and indirect teachers (Soar, 1968; Weber,
1968a,b; Wood t, Larsen, 1976). All found an indirect teaching
style had positive effects on creativity' In one study (Weber,
1968a, b) it was shown to enhance verbal but nr:t figural
creativity; the latter was enhanced by direct methods' Soar
( 1968) found the rate of increase in pupil creativity was faster
for low-anxious than high-anxious pupils.
Many studies compare the creativity of children in open and
traditional classrooms. Since one of the core concePts of open
education is to give pupils greater control over their iearning
activities, it is generally assumed that open classrooms are
more conducive to creativity than traditional ones. A survey of
the literature provides only partial support for this belief'
Ogilvie (1974) ranked five schools from most to least open'
Highest scores were obtained by students in the "mid-road"
schools, while highly structured (traditional) and highly
unstructured (oPen) schools were equally successful'
Nogrady (1976) also found limited suPport for a nonlinear
relationship. Several other studies found open education was
associated with higher creativity scores (Barker Lunn, 1970;
Butt, 1972; Haddon t, Lytton, 1968, i971; Hyman, 1978;
McCormick et al., 1978) and that these effects were long-term
(Butt, 1972;Haddon t, Ly'tton, 1971).Two studies rePort mixed
results, with open'education students scoring higher on some
tests and traditionallytaught pupils excelling on others (Lytton
& Cotton, 1969; Ramey t, Piper, 1974). Yet another study (Wil'
son et al.7972) found that pupils in a school that had used an
open approach for six years earned higher divergent thinking
scores than pupits in traditional classes, but pupils in a school
that had only recently adopted open education methods
scored lowest. Still other studies found no effect of open
education (Forman E McKinney, 1978; Carhart, 1976; Ruedi,
1 975; Walke r, 1964;and Wright, 1 97 5)' J ust one study (Ward t'
,i
;1,
i: lj::
Autonomy and Creativity in Children
Barcher, 1975) found only the traditional to be more effective'
and its effectivenes' *u' li*it"d to one grouP of students
(above-average ability) on figural tests'
Discussion Most of t#tt'Ji"t prior tJ 1975 reported that open educa-
tion enhanced at least some aspect of creativity; most studies
since then d;;. Although it has been suggested (Forman t'
McKinney, igi8'Wu'a &-Barcher' 1975) that the differences
aretheresultofmorerigorousmethodologicalpracticesin
recent y"u","u n'-ber o"f well'd.esigned studies' both recent
and older, iiJlrra that open educition was associated with
greater p'p'i t*"i'"ity (Haddon t' Lytton' 1968' 1971 ; Hyman'
1978; McCor-LX "t ui'' lgZgl' A more likely explanation for
this disparity may be found in recent changes in educational
practice. rit'" iirsl rePorts (Barker Lunn' 1970;Haddon E Lyt-
ton, 1968, igil,Lytion & Cotton' 1969;Ogilvie' i974) com'
pare teacnin-g 'iyf"i that hadevolved in English schools in the
sixties. Since then' "oPen education" has become the band-
wagon of the seventies (Myers & Duke' 1977)' with several
consequences' For one' many "traditional" teachers have
adopted some of the practices of open education' so that the
traditional schools of recent studies may be closer to the
midroad schools of earlier years' Ward and Barcher ( 1975)' for
example, ;"d that the diff erences between their two teacher
groups seemed to be differences of degree rather than of kind'
Furthermore, the two recent studies that did find differences
(Hyman, f gZg'Mtt"rmick et al" 1978) studied open and tradi-
tional classes that used very different methods'
A second consequence was that many of the classrooms
studied *";" ;;;i;r relatively brief periods' Those recent
reports that specify the duration indicate a few months to three
years' Schools tirat have recently changed to the open
upp,outf''u'" t"" effective (Wilson el al'' 7912)' possibly
because't"rnpo'u'y inconsistencies led them to resemble
Ogilvie's lIini"t""ninate" school that was least effective'
nu,tf'e'rno'"' t*tf'"" who wish to change may not be able to
do so effectively (Barker Lunn' 1970)' and the changes that do
occur *'li;" graauat' And even if teachers could change
practices quickly' pupils take time to gain the full benefits
(wilson et al" 1972)'
lnsomecasesthechangetoopeneducationmaybemade
withlittleunderstandingoracceptanceoftheunderlyingphi.
losophy (Giaquinta & Kazlow' 19'80)' or it may be imposed by
ua-lni'iu=io'-' '"gu'at"ss of teachers' views' As a result' it is
po*iur"irtul ma;y open classrooms have some characteris-
tics of open education - group work' movement of pupils'
62
(ON(LUSION
The Journal of Creative Behavior
many and varied teaching materials - while lacking in the
element most likely to influence creativity: student control.
Future studies should look more closely at the specific
elements in open education that would be expected to
encourage independence and creative thinking as well as
examine which kinds of creative thinking benefit (figural,
verbal, artistic, scientific, etc.).
Yet another consequence of the recent popularity of open
education is that it is often combined with other bandwagon
methods. particularly in the recent studies that found no
effects. Forman and McKinney's open classes (1978) also
used team teaching and open architecture. In Wilson et al.
(1972), it was combined with nongrading and open architec.
ture. In Wright's study (1975), it was confounded with open-
area building and family grouping.
Future research should also look for the influence of indi.
vidual differences on pupils' responses to different teaching
methods. While some studies consider IQ and SES their con-
cern is mainly how to control their effects rather than to deter-
mine what they are;yet IQ seems likely to influence the effects
of open education on creativity (Haddon & Lytton, i968;
Ogilvie, 1974; Ward t, Barcher, 1975). Similarly, lower-class
parents and pupils seem to prefer traditional schools (Myers 6
Duke, 1977). and Morris and Torrance (1977) have shown that
economically disadvantaged children failto effectively use the
freedom they are given. No study considered the effects of the
pupils' initial level of creativity on the extent to which creativity
is affected by educational practice even though there are indi.
cations that pupils creativity influences their responses to
their environment (Dimoff, 1975;MacDonald t Raths, i964;
Wardrop et al., 1969;Yamamoto, 1963).
The amount of independence that children experience in their
relationships with teachers and parents does influence their
creative ability. In general, freedom seems to enhance creativ-
ity, but there are indications that the relationship is curvilinear,
and the optimum amount of freedom may depend on the
particular task and type of creativity under consideration. The
relationship between parent-child warmth and children's crea-
tivity is less clear. The mixed results may be indicative of a
curvilinear relationship that varies with the extremes of
creativity under consideration as well as the particular task
used to measure creativity.
In general, the studies posed very broad questions. Nlore
precision is needed in defining what is meant by freedom, both
63
RFRNCS
Autonomy and Creativity in Children
from teachers and parents. Research is needed to elucidate
the mechanisms by which freedom leads to greater creativity,
whether by producing greater independence, as MacKinnon
(1962) implies, through greater emotional security (Rogers,
1959) or through ideational playfulness (Torrance t' Myers,
1970). New research should examine which particular aspects
of freedom influence specif ic types of creativity and how these
variables interact with each other and with the charac-
teristics children bring to their life situations.
None of the research reviewed sheds light on the
direction of the relationship. Although it is assumed that
teacher and parent behavior influences the children's
creativity, it is conceivable that the child's characteris-
tics influence the adults' behavior, or that both adults
and children are influenced by a third factor.
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F. C. Rejskind, Assistant professor
Address: McCill UniversitV, .lacul of Education, 3700 McTavish Street,
Montreal. Quebec, Canada H3A lyi.
67
... Autonomy and independence have also been tied to creative potential in early developmental and personality literature (e.g. Albert & Runco, 1988;Cropley, 1971;Rejskind, 1982;Torrance, 1965;Treffinger, 1980). For instance, Ch. A. Wright and S. D. Wright (1986) defined creative family environment and stressed three main components, i.e. (1) acceptance and respect for the child, (2) stimulation of independence, and (3) enriched learning environment. ...
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The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between dimensions of a constructive parenting style, (i.e. parental acceptance and autonomy granting) factors of the climate for creativity in parent–child relationships (encouragement to experience novelty and variety, encouragement of nonconformism, support of perseverance in creative efforts, and encouragement to fantasize), and parents’ visual mental imagery. 313 parents of children between 6 and 12 years of age participated in the study. The results indicated that (a) a constructive parenting style was positively related to three of four factors of the climate for creativity in the parent–child relationships, i.e. encouragement to experience novelty and variety, support of perseverance in creative efforts, and encouragement to fantasize in the parent–child relationship; (b) parents’ level of vividness of mental imagery was positively related with both parental acceptance of child and autonomy support as well as components of climate for creativity in parent–child relationship; (c) mothers scored significantly higher than fathers in exhibiting acceptance of a child; (d) parents’ gender played an important role in the relations between dimensions of constructive parenting style and factors of climate for creativity in parent–child relationships. Findings were discussed in terms of the implications for further research and theory development in the area of family influences on the development of children’s creativity.
... One of the most surprising results that emerged was the discovery of multiple interventions that placed children as independent users of the training, not needing external administrators. Given that autonomy and independence are two variables highly associated with creative individuals it is not surprising that these lead to behaviors of exploration, curiosity, and experimentation in children (Feist, 1999;Rejskind, 1982). Therefore, providing programs that empower children in their autonomy is beneficial for creativity outcomes. ...
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Creativity is an ability with psychological and developmental benefits. Creative levels are dynamic and oscillate throughout life, with a first major decline occurring at the age of 7 years old. However, creativity is an ability that can be nurtured if trained, with evidence suggesting an increase in this ability with the use of validated creativity training. Yet, creativity training for young children (aged between 6-9 years old) appears scarce. Additionally, existing training interventions resemble test-like formats and lack playful dynamics that could engage children in creative practices over time. This PhD project aimed at contributing to creativity stimulation in children by proposing to use social robots as intervention tools, thus adding playful and interactive dynamics to the training. Towards this goal, we conducted three studies in schools, summer camps, and museums for children, that contributed to the design, fabrication, and experimental testing of a robot whose purpose was to re-balance creative levels. Study 1 (n = 140) aimed at testing the effect of existing activities with robots in creativity and provided initial evidence of the positive potential of robots for creativity training. Study 2 (n = 134) aimed at including children as co-designers of the robot, ensuring the robot’s design meets children’s needs and requirements. Study 3 (n = 130) investigated the effectiveness of this robot as a tool for creativity training, showing the potential of robots as creativity intervention tools. In sum, this PhD showed that robots can have a positive effect on boosting the creativity of children. This places social robots as promising tools for psychological interventions.
... Autonomy and independence have also been tied to creative potential in early developmental and personality literature (e.g. Albert & Runco, 1988;Cropley, 1971;Rejskind, 1982;Torrance, 1965;Treffinger, 1980). For instance, Ch. A. Wright and S. D. Wright (1986) defined creative family environment and stressed three main components, i.e. (1) acceptance and respect for the child, (2) stimulation of independence, and (3) enriched learning environment. ...
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The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between dimensions of a constructive parenting style, (i.e. parental acceptance and autonomy granting) factors of the climate for creativity in parent-child relationships (encouragement to experience novelty and variety, encouragement of nonconformism, support of perseverance in creative efforts, and encouragement to fantasize), and parents’ visual mental imagery. 313 parents children between 6 and 12 years of age participated in the study. The results indicated that (a) a constructive parenting style was positively related to three of four factors of the climate for creativity in the parent-child relationships, i.e. encouragement to experience novelty and variety, support of perseverance in creative efforts, and encouragement to fantasize in the parent-child relationship; (b) parents' level of vividness of mental imagery was positively related with both parental acceptance of child and autonomy support as well as components of climate for creativity in parent-child relationship; (c) mothers scored significantly higher than fathers in exhibiting acceptance of a child; (d) parents' gender played an important role in the relations between dimensions of constructive parenting style and factors of climate for creativity in parent-child relationships. Findings were discussed in terms of the implications for further research and theory development in the area of family influences on the development of children's creativity.
... Rank (1936) also suggested that early life experiences, particularly concerning the degree to which parents support independence, have a strong influence on the development of autonomous creative will. Many investigations have supported the suppsition that, when parents encourage independence, their children's creativity is enhanced (Albert & Runco, 1989; G a e l s & Jackson, 1961; Rejskind, 1982). Thus, in Study 2, subjects' perceptions of their mother's and father's autonomy-supportiveness was assessed; it was predicted that these variables would also be positively related to creativity. ...
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... La compétence technique est le plus souvent développée en entreprise et la connaissance du secteur se révèle être un autre atout non négligeable. D'autre part, l'éducation reçue peut avoir favorisé l'esprit créatif et la capacité d'autonomie (Rejskind, 1980). Certaines cultures valorisent plus fortement la réussite financière et les activités d'affaires (McClelland, 1961). ...
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... Several developmental studies also demonstrated significant positive relations between childhood experiences of freedom and higher levels of creativity (Mackinnon, 1962;Getzels & Jackson, 1962;Weisberg & Springer, 1961). In an early review of the developmental literature, Rejskind (1982) con-cluded that parental practices that support independence appear to enhance children's creativity. She added, however, that the absence of prospective longitudinal studies which directly examine the relation of parenting experiences to later creativity limits the conclusions one can draw from this literature. ...
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