Creativity is important in many ways: for fresh thinking, innovation, productivity, self-expression and sustaining vibrant communities. This section comprises studies which show how engagement in arts and culture can enhance people's creativity.
The summaries in this category are:
This research as conducted by José Luis Ortega at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Spain
This paper attempted to understand which songs, artists and genres of music were most covered (and who did the most covering). The research built a database of recorded music throughout the 20th century. The …
This research was conducted by Jessica Sherrod Hale and Joanna Woronkowicz at Indiana University Bloomington, USA
Artistic residencies are one way in which organisations can bring about fresh thinking and innovation. This paper describes the results of an experiment which tested whether ‘artists act as intrapreneurs’ by ‘solving a novel, …
This research was conducted by Anna-Maija Nisula and Aino Kianto at Lappeenranta University of Technology, Finland
This paper sets out the impact of using theatrical improvisation techniques to develop creativity at a Finnish organisation of 6,000 employees undergoing a process of restructure and readjustment. The techniques were conveyed through ‘three …
This research was conducted by Boram Lee, Ian Fillis and Kim Lehman at the University of Stirling, Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Tasmania, Australia.
This paper outlines the impact of an artist residency and exhibition at an aquaculture institute in Scotland. It goes on to highlight …
This research was conducted by Emma Webster and George McKay at the University of East Anglia
The UK is home to an estimated 200 jazz festivals. In an assessment of the literature around these diverse events, this research highlights their manifold impacts: from catalysing economic growth through to expanding social …
This research was conducted by Devon Proudfoot, Aaron C. Kay and Christy Z. Koval at Duke University, USA.
Even when producing identical outputs, men are perceived as more creative than women, and ‘outside-the-box’ creative thinking is associated with stereotypically masculine characteristics. The study provides a statistical analysis of reactions …
This research was conducted by Alexander Schlegel and eight others at Dartmouth College, USA and Beijing Normal University, China.
This study investigated the impact of visual art training on young adults’ behaviour and changes in brain activity. A group of undergraduate students who were given introductory painting or drawing lessons …
This research was conducted by Robert A Power and 24 others at a variety of institutions worldwide
Based on the theory that some psychiatric disorders and creativity have shared attributes, the authors of this study investigated whether common genetic characteristics that place individuals at risk of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder …
This research was conducted by Alexander Styhre and Michael Eriksson at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
This paper describes what happened during the Artists In Residence scheme, a project in Sweden that matched artists with business to work together for a 10 month period. The artists involved included musicians, …
This research was conducted by Brenda Pavill at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, USA
This paper outlines the various ways in which student nurses benefit from taking an art module in their training. It describes what happened as part of The Creative Project, a component within a nursing training …