Can creativity be the critical element for the success of a Space Mission? Problem solving methodologies, as brainstorming, are familiar for finding solutions to technical problems. The analytical skills to solve problems and the creativity required to invent new products may appear similar, but they are profoundly different. Creativity requires a different mindset than problem solving. In sect...

T here is a great need for creativity within the MS/OR environment. Managers must be capable of defining problems, developing novel solutions, and implementing them effectively. A lot of research has focused on creativity. For example , Evans [1993] and McFadzean [forthcoming] discussed methods of improving creative thinking in people; Couger [1995], McFadzean [1998a], and VanGundy [1988] prese...

The typical creative process varies, not only with the domain of activity (for example, artistic creativity differs from that in science, which differs, in turn, from that in business and industry), but also with the nature of the particular situation in the domain. For example, a business executive’s creative positioning of a company for success in the long-term future differs significantly fr...

The micro-time context of group processes (such as argumentation) can affect a group’s micro-creativity (new ideas). Eighty high school students worked in groups of four on an algebra problem. Groups with higher mathematics grades showed greater microcreativity, and both were linked to better problem solving outcomes. Dynamic multilevel analyses of the groups’ 2951 turns of conversation statist...