William B. Vessey

Examining the Leaders of Creative Efforts: What Do They Do, and What Do They Think About?

Due to the rapidly changing economy, innovation is becoming more and more critical for the success and survival of many organizations. Although several factors shaping innovation (e.g., strategy, climate, etc.) have been examined in the literature, the leadership of innovation has received relatively less attention. In this article, we attempt to summarize the literature on the leadership of creative efforts focusing on critical leadership behaviours. We also explore a model of core leader functions tailored for creativity and innovation, as well as a model of innovation planning. The implications of these models for the leadership of innovation are discussed.

Heuristics as a Basis for Assessing Creative Potential: Measures, Methods, and Contingencies

Studies of creative thinking skills have generally measured a single aspect of creativity, divergent thinking. A number of other processes involved in creative thought have been identified. Effective execution of these processes is held to depend on the strategies applied in process execution, or heuristics. In this article, we review prior studies, examining the procedures used to measure these heuristics. Evidence for the reliability and validity of these measures is provided where available. In addition, we propose alternative methods for the measurement of heuristics. The implications of measuring heuristics on the study of creativity are discussed.

Predicting Scientific Creativity: The Role of Adversity, Collaborations, and Work Strategies.

There is little doubt that career experiences contribute to scientific achievement; however this relationship has yet to be thoroughly investigated in terms the effects on scientific creativity. In this study, a historiometric approach was used to examine 3 areas of adult career experiences common to scientific achievement. In doing so, prior theoretical work was used to identify career experiences relevant to scientific achievement, and 3 theoretical models were proposed to account for these experiences—adversity, collaborations, and work strategies. Biographies of eminent scientists were then content coded and analyzed. The results indicated that the adversity model did not predict scientific creativity. However, the work strategies model and, to some degree, the collaborations model showed some promise in understanding the development of creative potential in scientists. The nature of the significant relationships among the model components and scientific creativity are discussed in addition to their implications for the development of the creative potential of scientists.