Implicit theories of creativity: laypersons' perceptions of the creativity of adaptors and innovators.

Kirton has put forward a theory of creativity style in which he maintains that people with more adaptive or more innovative orientations possess equal creative potential. The purpose of this study was to compare Kirton's explicit theory with laypersons' implicit theories of creativity. Laypersons and students were asked to read descriptions of adaptors and innovators and then, using their own personal conceptions of creativity, rate adaptors and innovators on creativity. Analysis showed that the innovative style was perceived as significantly more creative. Furthermore, individuals who possessed a more innovative style were much more likely to rate the innovative orientation as more highly creative. Potential reasons for the implicit view that innovators are more creative are offered. In particular, cultural biases towards the innovative style are discussed.

Person-environment fit: using commensurate scales to predict student stress.

The relationship between person-environment fit and stress was examined for two samples of university students (N = 55 and 79). The Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) was modified to assess the students' perceptions of the adaptor-innovator style required by their course, the styles they exhibited in the course, and their ideal style preferences. To ascertain fit, the KAI total scores and subscale scores (Originality, Efficiency, and Rule/Group Conformity) were used to classify students on three dimensions: (1) perception of what style their course required, adaptive or innovative; (2) congruence between the style the course required and the style they exhibited in the course; and (3) the magnitude of the difference, if any, between the required style and the exhibited style. Points two and three are measures of fit. The dependent variable was stress. Also the students' ideal style scores, KAI total and subscales, were substituted for the exhibited scores and the classification and analyses were repeated. Analysis of the total scores revealed that a course requiring adaptive behaviours was perceived as more stressful than a course requiring innovative behaviours. Similarly, an analysis of the Rule/Group Conformity scores revealed that the greater the conformity required the greater the stress. Also the less originality demanded in the course the greater was the perceived stress. For the KAI total scores and Rule/Group Conformity scores, the two measures of fit (incongruity and magnitude of the incongruity) were not related to stress. However, analyses of the Originality and Efficiency subscales supported the importance of the P-E fit position. For both subscales, stress was associated with the magnitude of the difference between what was required in the course and what students exhibited in the course. Educational implications derived from these findings as well as recommendations for future research are discussed.