The Effect of Creative Problem Solving Training on Creativity and Life Satisfaction of Gifted Boy Students

Background and Purpose: Gifted and creative students are the potential assets of each society whose talents development has been always one of the concerns of the educational system. Present research was conducted to investigate the effect of creative problem solving training on creativity and life satisfaction of gifted male students. Method: This study was a quasi-experimental research with pretest-posttest control group design. The study population included 452 exceptionally talented male students studying at first cycle of the secondary school in Ardabil city in the academic year 2016-2017. The sample consisted of 46 gifted students from the said population with the age range of 13 to 14.5, who were selected by cluster sampling and then randomly assigned to either the experimental or the control group. Tehran-Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (Afrooz and Kamkari, 2011), Hubner's Life Satisfaction Questionnaire (2001) and Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (1998) were used to collect the data. Participants in the experimental group participated in 13 sessions of creative problem solving training program; while the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed by univariate and multivariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA & MANCOVA). Results: Results showed that the mean score of creativity and life satisfaction was significantly different between the groups at the posttest stage and the scores of the experimental group were significantly higher than the control group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Findings of this research indicate that creative problem solving training program not only increases the creativity of the students but also enhances their life satisfaction.  The higher scores of the experimental group in the life satisfaction suggest that the most significant effect of creative problem solving training program occurs in the interpersonal relationships.